Group D

Cote D’Ivoire have traditionally been Africa’s top team, but new coach Herve Renard is facing severe defensive problems. Les Elephants have conceded the most goals out of any side that has qualified for the tournament. In an act of desperation, Renard tried recalling Dider Zokora and Kolo Toure. The former declined, but Toure has brought with him a semblance of organization. If Cote D’Ivoire are to make a deep run in Equatorial Guinea, they will have to shore up their defence.

Volker Finke should be bestowed vast amounts of credit for the way he has restructured his Cameroon side. After a shambolic display in Brazil, the German caretaker has put his faith in youth, turning to the likes of Clinton N’Jie and Vincent Aboubakar in attack. The move has proved intelligent as Cameroon retained their defensive rigidity, but now also boast a dynamic attack.

Like Finke, Guinea deserve a lot of respect for the mental resilience they showed during qualifiers. The country was banned from hosting matches in their own country due to the Ebola outbreak, but nevertheless earned their qualification after holding off Togo and Uganda. The striking trio of Seydouba Soumah, Idrissa Sylla, and Ibrahima Traore are particularly potent, and have scored all of Guinea’s ten goals in qualifying.

Rounding off Group D is Mali, who have two consecutive Africa Cup of Nations third-place finishes to their names. Henryk Kasperczak’s side is a physical one who don’t concede a lot of goals and look to score via set-pieces.

AFKSports Predicts:

Cameroon and Cote D’Ivoire advance in AFCON 2015