AFCON 2021 Quarter-Finals: Who will edge closer to glory in Cameroon?

After a slow start, the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) has certainly lived up to its unpredictable reputation. Many might have feared the worst during the opening few days of the tournament with 12 of the opening 14 matches ending either 0-0 or 1-0 – Cameroon’s 2-1 win against Burkina Faso in the opener being the exception. But since then, we haven’t looked back.

We’ve been treated to world-class goals, heart-warming underdog stories, plenty of shocks and no shortage of controversial moments. Unfortunately, the Super Eagles departed in the Round of 16, losing 1-0 to Tunisia despite topping Group D with three wins from three. However, you can still enjoy the rest of the knockout stages in style at Bet9ja, with some of the best odds and markets around. Here’s a breakdown of each quarter-final match ahead of Saturday.

Gambia vs Cameroon, Saturday 29th January 5pm

The first quarter-final sees rank-outsiders The Gambia take on hosts Cameroon. Debutants The Gambia are ranked 150 in the world which is the lowest rank in the tournament, but have looked very much at home during their first taste of AFCON football. The Scorpions have only conceded once going into Saturday’s match, and recorded an impressive last gasp victory over 2004 AFCON champions Tunisia in the group stage.

Then in the Round of 16 against AFCON stalwarts Guinea, The Gambia produced a fine display to edge their opponents 1-0, thanks to a well-taken goal by Musa Barrow. The Scorpions might’ve ridden their luck at times during that victory and had goalkeeper Baboucarr Gaye to thank for a stunning late save, to go with his penalty save against Tunisia.

Hosts Cameroon would fancy their chances against their opponents, as the Indomitable Lions look to take a step closer to a sixth AFCON title. Cameroon won two of their three group matches scoring seven times. While they saw off another AFCON debutant Comoros in the Round of 16, Cameroon have been tested throughout the tournament.

But captain Vincent Aboubakar has been on fire so far with six goals already to his name and will be eyeing Ndaye Mulamba’s record of nine goals in a single AFCON, achieved for Zaire (now DR Congo) in 1974.

With the likes of the Aboubakar, Toko Ekambi, Eric Choupo-Moting and company, you’d expect the Cameroon to have too much for The Gambia, and odds of around 8 at Bet9ja for the shock suggests that, but it certainly promises to be an intriguing tie.

Bet9ja odds: (in 90 minutes) Gambia win: 8.1, Draw: 3.5, Cameroon win: 1.56. Prediction: Cameroon win

Burkina Faso vs Tunisia, Saturday 29th January 8pm

The conquerors of the Super Eagles are in action in the second quarter-final. After scraping through Group F as one of the four best third placed teams, Tunisia somewhat stunned Nigeria with a 1-0 victory in the Round of 16, and had a host of players and their head coach missing due to COVID-19.

But despite being without the likes of captain Wahbi Khazri, who did make an appearance from the bench, a fine strike from a veteran of seven AFCON’s Youssef Msakni, was a enough to seal a deserved victory for the 2004 champions. Tunisia were well organised against Nigeria and if they can replicate that stubbornness, with the addition of previously unavailable players, they could well be appearing in a second consecutive AFCON semi-final.

But Burkina Faso will provide a stern test. Right from the opening game in a narrow defeat to hosts Cameroon, the 2013 runners-up have proven they are a tough team to play against, even if they needed penalties to see off Gabon in the previous round.

The Stallions should’ve arguably finished the game off before conceding a stoppage time equaliser, with star man and captain Bertrand Traore also missing a penalty before slotting home shortly after, and was excellent throughout. He will be key on Sunday, and while Burkina Faso are ranked 30 places behind their opponents in the FIFA World Rankings, they have more than enough going forward to cause a surprise and just might be the tip of the quarter-finals at 3.6 to win in 90 minutes right here at Bet9ja.

Bet9ja odds: Burkina Faso win: 3.6, Draw: 2.77, Tunisia win: 2.48. Prediction: Burkina Faso win

Egypt vs Morocco, Sunday 30th January, 4pm

They often say to win a major tournament such as the AFCON, you need to peak at the right time. For example, Portugal didn’t win a match in normal time until the semi-finals when they lifted the UEFA European Championships in 2016. A similar case could be made for Egypt. The Pharaohs were underwhelming to say the least in during the 1-0 defeat to Nigeria in their opening match of the tournament.

The record seven-time champions did just about enough to see off both Guinea-Bissau and Sudan 1-0, before beating Ivory Coast 5-4 on penalties in the Round of 16. They were the better team against the Ivorian’s, with Omar Marmoush striking the bar, Mohamed Salah coming close and Trezeguet spurning a couple of good chances. Two goals in four matches will worry head coach Carlos Queiroz but Salah is yet to reach his best, although he showed signs of it in the Round of 16, including scoring the winning penalty.

Morocco are the second highest ranked team at the AFCON and have shown why so far. The Atlas Lions are currently unbeaten scoring a healthy seven goals in the process and certainly have the quality needed to go far in the tournament.

While Malawi took a shock lead courtesy of an unbelievable strike from Gabadinho Mhango, Morocco largely dominated with 75% possession and 24 attempts on goal, and made it through thanks to a fine free-kick from PSG defender Achraf Hakimi.

The right-back now has two goals in the tournament, so too does Sofiane Boufal while Youssef En-Nesyri opened his AFCON 2021 in the previous round, and will be a threat after scoring 18 times in the Spanish La Liga for Sevilla last season. While we make Morocco slight favourites, Egypt will certainly take some beating in arguably the hardest to call of the four quarter-finals.

Bet9ja odds: Egypt win: 3.40, Draw: 2.7, Morocco win: 2.58. Prediction: Egypt win

Senegal vs Equatorial Guinea, Sunday 30th January, 8pm

Favourites Senegal are in action in the last of the quarter-finals and it’s hard not to envisage the Lions of Teranga in the final four of the tournament. Like most teams in the tournament, it’s been a slow burner for Senegal so far. They needed a 97th minute by Sadio Mane to beat Zimbabwe before two underwhelming goalless draws against Guinea and Malawi. However, that was enough to see Senegal top Group B and they eventually saw off nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 in a one-sided encounter. They were tipped by many to go one better than finishing runners-up in 2019 and lift the AFCON for the first time and in truth it will be one of the biggest shocks of all time if Equatorial Guinea stop a side with the likes of Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly, Idrissa Gueye and Mane

But credit to the National Thunder for reaching the quarter-finals for just the third time in their history. After finishing second in Group E and shocking defending champions Algeria 1-0 in the process, goalkeeper Jesus Owono was the hero in the Round of 16. He saved twice in the penalty shootout against Mali to help his side cause another shock in what was a resilient display once again. Equatorial Guinea are around 7.5 to make the semi-finals for the first time since 2015 and while this could be a step too far for them, it would be another to add to the list of upsets in AFCON 2021.

Bet9ja odds: Senegal win: 1.58, Draw: 3.45, Equatorial Guinea win: 7.5. Prediction: Senegal win

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