The business end of the AFCON 2023 is underway as some of the boys have been separated from some of the men. The Round 16 fixtures were exciting, superb, full of shocks and entertaining.
Here, Sportsworldghana talks about some of the interesting things we learned in Round 16.
1. Mamelodi Sundowns is Bafana Bafana’s backbone
Watching Bafana Bafana is like watching the Masandawana. Hugo Broos has built South Africa around the Mamelodi Sundowns’ team as his starting 11 against Morocco included 8 players from the Brazillians. Ronwen Williams, Sundowns’ number 1, has been great in the post.
The entire back four of Aubrey Modiba, Mothobi Mvala, Grant Kekana and Khuliso Mudau are Sundowns’ defenders.
Teboho Mokoena is a powerful midfielder who has the energy to dictate the game and is a Sundowns midfielder.
Thapelo Morena and Themba Zwane (both Subdowns) are playmakers who have developed a wonderful partnership with Orlando Pirates’ Evidence Makgopa.
Sithole and Tau, formerly of Sundowns play for Tondela and Al Ahly Cairo respectively as they are the only three players who do not play for the Madandawana.
It is all down to Pitso Mosimane, Manqoba Mngqithi and Rulani Mokwena who have laid a solid foundation for Mamelodi Sundowns over the last decade.
2. Mabululu and Ndala are probably the deadly duo in the AFCON 2023
We have seen so many players putting up 10/10 performances in the AFCON. Mabululu and Gerson Dala are among the best players in the AFCON. The Angolan duo have been incredible in Angola’s run to the quarter-finals. Mbala Nzola of Fiorentina opted to not play in the AFCON for Angola. Many people wondered where the Palancas Negras were going to get their goals from. In his absence, Al Ittihad Alexandria’s Mabulu and Gerson Ndala of Al Wakra destroyed Namibia on Saturday in Angola’s 3-0 win with Mabulu scoring an incredible goal.
They both have 7 goals combined with Mabulu scoring 3 and Dala 4. They are the best duo in the 2023 AFCON.
3. Ivory Coast played their best game in the tournament against Senegal
“After Morocco’s match, we had nothing more to lose. As they say: a ghost can’t be afraid”, these were the words of Frank Kessie as he revealed how Ivory Coast felt before the crunch clash against Senegal. The Elephants conceded an early goal against Senegal in the 3rd making the job very difficult but started controlling the game with the experience of Jean Michel Seri calming things down for the host. Sangare and the ever-impressive Fofana were up there against Senegal’s young midfield trio of Pape Gueye, Pape Matar Sarr and Lamine Camara.
The Elephants endured a horrible afternoon against Equatorial Guinea as they played like Sunday league players in the 4-0 humiliation but stepped up when all the odds were against them. By far, it was Ivory Coast’s best game with the novice Emerse Faes getting his changes correct in the second half.
4. FIFA and CAF’s Top 5 ranked teams are surprisingly knocked out
Maybe the FIFA rankings deceived many pundits and football fans ahead of the AFCON. Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt are the top 5 ranked teams by FIFA and CAF. None is in the last 8 as Morocco and Senegal were the only among them to be able to record wins. Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia failed to record a single win.
Interestingly, all the 8 quarter-finalists in the 2021s AFCON, none were able to qualify for the quarter-finals of the ongoing AFCON 2023. It is very incredible to see even the minnows rise to deal with the perennial big boys. FIFA Rankings can sometimes make you feel like you’re the best. It has happened to France, Spain, Germany and Brazil. They were all ranked higher but miserably failed in a major torment and that is what happened in the 2023 AFCON.
5. Victor Osimhen is extremely dangerous
What a proper striker! The 2023 African Footballer of the Year has scored just one goal in the ongoing AFCON but he has been extremely difficult to deal with. The Napoli forward always finishes games like he has scored a hat trick. His pace, aggression and passion are out of this world. Defenders have struggled to contain him because he has a lot to his game. In the 2-0 win against Cameroon, Osimhen showed great balance and vision to release Ademola Lookman who put the Super Eagles ahead. Angola defenders must be wary of his threat because if he gets his day, Victor Osimhen will be extremely dangerous.
