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Final spot is at stake when the Stallions of Burkina Faso and Senegal face off in the first Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2021) semi-final game at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium on Wednesday.
Both sides, who were beaten finalists in 2013 and 2019 respectively, will head into the game desperate to get one over the other as they seek to conquer the continent for the first time ever.
Burkina Faso will be delighted with their performance at this year’s tournament as they have turned in a performance of the highest quality and made it to the last four against the odds.
After suffering a 2-1 defeat at the hands of host nation Cameroon in the tournament’s opener on January 9, Kamou Malo’s men bounced back to winning ways four days later when they saw off Cape Verde 1-0 courtesy of Hassane Bande’s solitary strike.
Burkina Faso rounded off the group stages with a 1-1 draw with Ethiopia on January 17 to pick up four points from three games in Group A and finish as runners-up, three points adrift of group winners Cameroon and level on points with Cape Verde, who also progressed as one of the four best third-placed sides.
The Burkinabes were then forced into penalties by a resilient Gabon side in their round-of-16 clash two Sundays ago, when Adama Guira’s own goal canceled out Bertrand Traore’s first-half strike (in a game where he missed at Penalty) to restore parity before they claimed a 7-6 victory in a nervy shootout.
This team went on to stun Tunisia 1-0 in last Saturday’s quarter-finals encounter when Dango Ouattara netted on the stroke of half time to send the Eagles of Carthage packing.
The Stallions head into Wednesday’s game unbeaten in 10 of their last 11 games across all competitions picking up five wins and five draws with their group-stage defeat at the hands of the Indomitable Lions being the only exception.
While they will now look to keep the dice rolling, the goal will be to make it to the final and better their 2013 run, where they made it to the final before suffering a frustrating 1-0 defeat at the hands of three-time champions Nigeria.
However, next up is a tricky tie against an opposing side who they have failed to taste a defeat in each of the last four meetings between the sides since 2006, with their most recent three encounters ending in draws.
Senegal have hit their stride at the business end of the tournament and will now feel confident in their chances of going all the way this year and ending their wait for continental glory.
Aliou Cisse’s men had to dig deep in their AFCON opener on January 10 as they needed a 97th-minute Saido Mane to see off a dogged Zimbabwe side.
Their struggles in the game were signs of things to come as they failed to win their subsequent group games, playing out goalless draws against Guinea and Malawi respectively, but with five points from three games, the Lions of Teranga topped Group B and secured smooth passage to the knockout stages.
However, having scored just once in the group stages, Senegal put two past Cape Verde in their round-of-16 clash on January 25, with second-half goals from Mane and Marseille youngster Bamba Dieng.
This was followed by a dominant display against Equatorial Guinea in last Sunday’s quarter-finals as they secured a comprehensive 3-1 victory when the sides locked horns at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium.
In that game, Famara Diedhiou put Cisse’s men ahead just before the half-hour mark, and when Jannick Buyla restored parity in the 57th minute, Cheikhou Kouyate came off the bench to restore Senegal’s lead before fellow substitute Ismaila Sarr made sure of the result in the 79th minute in what was his first appearance at the tournament.
The two-time finalist, who lost to Algeria in Egypt three years ago, head into Wednesday’s game unbeaten in 11 straight games, claiming eight wins and three draws since a COSAFA Cup defeat at the hands of South Africa back last July.
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Burkina Faso will take to the pitch without the services of Lorient youngster Ouattara, who scored the winner against Tunisia last time out before picking up a straight red eight minutes away from time.
On the injury front, Djibril Ouattara made his first appearance at the tournament in the aforementioned game, but after coming off with a 72nd-minute injury, the 22-year-old forward’s participation is in doubt.
Following his side’s solid defensive display against the Eagles of Carthage, Malo could name the same backline, meaning we could see Steeve Yago, Edmond Tapsoba, Soumaila Ouattara and Issa Kabore shielding Herve Koffi between the sticks for the third game running.
Meanwhile, after scoring just once in the group stages, Senegal have found their touch in the knockout stages, netting five times in two games, and we expect Cisse to name an unchanged attacking unit of Boulaye Dia, Diedhiou and Mane.
The Liverpool man, who has netted eight times in the Premier League this season, has two goals and two assist under his belt at the tournament and will certainly play a big role for the Lions of Teranga.
In defence, Senegal have been strong so far, conceding just once in five games and we expect to see an unchanged back four of Bouna Sarr, Kalidou Koulibaly, Abdou Diallo and Saliou Ciss shielding Chelsea man Edouard Mendy in goals.
Kayoute and Sarr both came off the bench to find the target and send Equatorial Guinea packing and we should see the duo come into the starting lineup on Wednesday.
Burkina Faso possible starting lineup:
Herve Koffi; Issa Kabore, Edmond Tapsoba, Soumaila Ouattara, Steve Yago; Nikiema, Guira, Sangare; Bande, Djibril Ouattara, Bertrand Traore
Senegal possible starting lineup:
Edouard Mendy; Bouna Sarr, Kalidou Koulibaly, Abdou Diallo, Saliou Ciss; Kayoute, N Mendy, Idirisa Gueye; Diedhiou, Boulaye Dia, Saido Mane
