Ivory Coast have had a tumultuous tournament firing head coach Jean-Louis Gasset for poor performance but then making it to the round of 16. Once they’ve gotten to the knockout stages, it has been tough sledding for the Elephants needing a penalty shootout to defeat Senegal and extra time along with two goals while down a man to get past Mali to make it here. Meanwhile, DR Congo broke out of four consecutive draws to surge past Guinea so they’ll come into this match with confidence.
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Here’s our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
- Date: Wednesday, Jan. 7 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: Stade Olympique Alassane Outtara — Abidjan, Ivory Coast
- TV: beIN Sports | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
- Odds: Ivory Coast +119; Draw +185; DR Congo +290
Storylines
Ivory Coast: With Sebastian Haller and Simon Adingra back from injury, Ivory Coast’s attack is much stronger than the one that kicked off AFCON play and after fighting through the knockout stages to this point, they’ll like their chances. As the first team to qualify for the semifinals after losing two games in the group stage since Senegal in 2006, Ivory Coast has now made the semis for the first time since 2015 when they also won the tournament.
DR Congo: Despite being unbeaten in five matches, DR Congo still need to show that their last match wasn’t a fluke after four consecutive draws. After winning AFCON twice in 1968 and 1974, it has been quite a while since DR Congo have been to this stage of the tournament but with how shaky Ivory Coast has been, they’ll have a chance to end their drought.
Prediction
Finally back to full strength and backed by a home crowd, Ivory Coast will ride the support to a spot in the AFCON final. Pick: Ivory Coast 2, DR Congo 1