AFCON 2023: Cape Verde Vs Mauritania Preview
Written by Oluwaseun Oyediji
History will be made in this clash as one of either Cape Verde or Mauritania will break their duck of having never won an Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) knockout tie.
Cape Verde
The former will come into this last-16 tie as favourites, and understandably so as they downed Ghana before beating Mozambique and then earning an impressive draw with Egypt to qualify as Group B winners.
Cape Verde secured top spot with a game to spare, meaning manager Bubista was able to rest a number of key players for that clash against Egypt, including Bebe who scored that memorable long-distance strike against Mozambique.
The Blue Sharks are expected to be back to full strength for this one, so don’t be shocked to see them add to their ever-improving recent run of just one defeat in six matches (three wins and two draws).
Player to watch
Cape Verde’s Kevin Lenini is a man often in the thick of the action. He scored against Mozambique, picked up a yellow against Egypt and has committed more AFCON fouls than any of his teammates so far (eight).
Mauritania
Mauritania’s qualification was far less impressive, but extremely dramatic nonetheless.
They opened with two successive defeats and looked certain to be heading home, before a remarkable 1-0 win against Algeria - a side ranked 75 places higher than them by the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) - sealed their progression as one of the best third-placed sides.
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That was Mauritania’s first win from their last seven matches (two draws and four losses), but no doubt reaching this stage in their debut AFCON tournament will be reflected on as a success irrespective of what happens next.
The freedom that comes with that means Mauritania can’t be overlooked to cause another upset here.
That point especially rings true when you also take into account they are undefeated in each of their last two head-to-heads (H2Hs) with Cape Verde (a win and a draw), winning the most recent clash 2-1 back in 2019.
Player to watch
Mauritania’s goalkeeper Babacar Niasse will hope to stop Kevin Lenini from adding to his attacking returns and can boast having made the most saves in the competition at the end of the group stage (12 saves).
Just one of Mauritania’s last six international matches saw both teams score.
Verdict: Cape Verde are fans favourite to win this tie but there is little room for an upset from Mauritania.
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