Host Ivory Coast will be gunning for its third African Cup of Nations trophy when it takes on continental heavyweight Nigeria in the AFCON 2024 final on February 11.
While Nigeria has been dominant through the competition, reaching the final unbeaten, Ivory Coast stumbled its way through the group stages and the initial playoff rounds but stands a chance in making history on home turf at the Olympic Stadium in Abidjan.
Here is all you need to know ahead of the AFCON 2024 final between Ivory Coast and Nigeria:
Ivory Coast - Factfile
Ranking: 8th in Africa; 49 in World
Scorers at AFCON 2024: 1 - Simon Adingra, Oumar Diakite, Seko Fofana, Sebastien Haller, Franck Kessie, Jean-Philippe Krasso
Captain: Serge Aurier
Coach: Emerse Fae
Previous appearances: 24
Best placing: Champions 1992, 2015
Record wins: Ethiopia 6-1 (1970), Guinea 5-0 (2008)
Record loss: Equatorial Guinea 0-4 (2024)
Nickname: Elephants
Path to final:
Group A - Guinea-Bissau 2-0, Nigeria 0-1, Equatorial Guinea 0-4; Last 16 - Senegal 1-1 (5-4 penalties), Quarter-final - Mali 2-1; Semi-final - Democratic Republic of Congo 1-0
Nigeria - Factfile
Ranking: 6th in Africa, 42 in World
Scorers: 3 - Ademola Lookman, 2 - William Troost-Ekong, 1 - Victor Osimhen, own goal - Opa Sangante (GNB)
Rankings: 6 Africa, 42 world
Captain: William Troost-Ekong
Coach: Jose Peseiro (POR)
Previous appearances: 19
Best placing: Champions 1980, 1994, 2013
Record win: South Africa 4-0 (2004)
Record losses: Sudan 0-4 (1963), Algeria 1-5 (1990)
Nickname: Super Eagles
Path to final:
Group A - Equatorial Guinea 1-1, Ivory Coast 1-0, Guinea-Bissau 1-0; Last 16 - Cameroon 2-0; Quarter-final - Angola 1-0; Semi-final - South Africa 1-1 (4-2 penalties)
Ivory Coast vs Nigeria: Head-to-head record in AFCON
1980: Nigeria 0-0 Ivory Coast (Group A)
1990: Nigeria 1-0 Ivory Coast (Group A)
1994: Nigeria 2-2 Ivory Coast, Nigeria won 4-2 on penalties (Semi-final)
2006: Nigeria 0-1 Ivory Coast (Semi-final)
2008: Nigeria 0-1 Ivory Coast (Group B)
2013: Nigeria 2-1 Ivory Coast (Quarter-final)
2024: Nigeria 1-0 Ivory Coast (Group A)
IVORY COAST SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Yahia Fofana (Angers/FRA), Charles Ayayi (ASEC Mimosas), Badra Ali Sangare (Sekhukhune Utd/RSA)
Defenders: Serge Aurier, Willy Boly (both Nottingham Forest/ENG), Ismael Diallo (Hajduk Split/CRO), Ousmane Diomande (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Ghislain Konan (Al Fayha/KSA), Odilon Kossounou (Bayer Leverkusen/GER), Evan Ndicka (Roma/ITA), Wilfried Singo (Monaco/FRA)
Midfielders: Jean Thierry Lazare (Union Saint-Gilloise/BEL), Idrissa Doumbia (Al Ahli/QAT), Seko Fofana (Al Nassr/KSA), Franck Kessie (Al Ahly/KSA), Ibrahim Sangare (Nottingham Forest/ENG), Jean Michael Seri (Hull/ENG)
Forwards: Simon Adingra (Brighton/ENG), Jonathan Bamba (Celta Vigo/ESP), Jeremie Boga (Nice/FRA), Oumar Diakite (Reims/FRA), Max Alain Gradel (Gaziantep/TUR), Sebastien Haller (Borussia Dortmund/GER), Karim Konate (Salzburg/AUT), Christian Kouame (Fiorentina/ITA), Jean Philippe Krasso (Red Star Belgrade/SRB), Nicolas Pepe (Trabzonspor/TUR)
NIGERIA SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Stanley Nwabili (Chippa Utd/RSA), Olorunleke Ojo (Enyimba), Francis Uzoho (Omonia/CYP)
Defenders: Chidozie Awaziem, Bruno Onyemaechi (both Boavista/POR), Ola Aina (Nottingham Forest/ENG), Semi Ajayi (West Brom/ENG), Calvin Bassey (Fulham/ENG), Kenneth Omeruo (Kasimpasa/TUR), Bright Osayi-Samuel (Fenerbahce/TUR), Zaidu Sanusi (Porto/POR), William Troost-Ekong (PAOK/GRE)
Midfielders: Joe Aribo (Southampton/ENG), Alex Iwobi (Fulham/ENG), Raphael Onyedika (Club Brugge/BEL), Frank Onyeka (Brentford/ENG), Alhaasan Yusuf (Royal Antwerp/BEL)
Forwards: Samuel Chukwueze (AC Milan/ITA), Kelechi Iheanacho (Leicester/ENG), Ademola Lookman (Atalanta/ITA), Terem Moffi (Nice/FRA), Ahmed Musa (Sivasspor/TUR), Victor Osimhen (Napoli/ITA), Moses Simon (Nantes/FRA), Paul Onuachu (Trabzonspor/TUR)
LIVE STREAMING INFO
The 2024 African Cup of Nations Final between Ivory Coast and Nigeria will kick-off at 1:30 AM IST on February 12, 2024 and will be streamed live in India on the Fancode app and website.
