Sports News of Sunday, 8 February 2015
Source: Ismail Akwei | GhanaWeb
Ghana faces Cote d’Ivoire in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations Equatorial Guinea 2015 at the Bata Stadium in Bata, Equatorial Guinea.
This game is predicted to be one of the most difficult finals of the continental competition as the Black Stars have not won the tournament in 33 years while the Ivorians have also not won it in 23 years.
The two teams’ only meeting in this competition’s final produced a goalless draw stalemate in 1992, which was won 11-10 on penalties by the Elephants.
The last time these sides met was in 2010 during the AFCON, which Côte d’Ivoire won 3-1 at the group stage.
The Elephants have reached their third AFCON final in the last six editions.
They lost the 2006 and 2012 finals on penalties while the Black Stars have won this continental showpiece on 4 occasions and became the first nation to win the trophy for keeps, but have failed to win the title since they last won it in 1982.
The starting line-up for Cote d’Ivoire: B. Barry, W. Kanon, S. Tiéné, E. Bertrand, K. Touré, S. Aurier, Y. Touré, G. Serey Die, W. Bony, Y. Gervinho, M. Gradel.
The starting line-up for Ghana: R. Brimah, H. Afful, J. Boye, J. Mensah, A. Baba, A. Acquah, W. Mubarak, A. Gyan, C. Atsu, A. Ayew, K. Appiah.
Who is best positioned to win the AFCON 2015?