By Yankuba Jallow
Guinea, who were eliminated in the AfCON 2021 by The Gambia, will play the Scorpions tonight in Ivory Coast in the ongoing AfCON 2023 competition.
The Scorpions of The Gambia were eliminated at the round of 8 – quarter-finals – by the host Cameron in their maiden AfCON appearance. This is their second appearance in the AfCON competitions. They lost 3-nil in their opener against neighbouring Senegal.
Guinea, on the other hand, were knocked out by the Scorpions in the last edition of the AfCON. Forward Musa Barrow’s 71stminute goal was enough to seal victory for the Scorpions over the Guineans on 24 January 2021.
The match today in Yamoussoukro is going to be one of the most watched by West Africa’s football enthusiasts. The Guineans drew one-all against Cameroon in their opener while the Scorpions are sitting at the bottom of the table after their defeat on Monday against Senegal.
A victory today against Guinea would consolidate the Scorpions’ chances to qualify for the next round while a defeat may ruin the chances of their qualification. From the six groups, the top two teams will have automatic qualification while there will be four (4) best losers, who will be selected from the remainder of the teams.
Gambia’s duo, Ablie Jallow and Ebrima Colley, who missed the opener against Senegal, will be available for selection against Guinea. The two missed owing to the yellow cards they accumulated in the qualifiers.
