{"id":1611,"date":"2026-01-09T04:35:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T04:35:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/?p=1611"},"modified":"2026-01-09T11:45:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T11:45:48","slug":"afcon-set-for-most-thrilling-quarterfinals-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/?p=1611","title":{"rendered":"AFCON set for most thrilling quarterfinals ever"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

RABAT<\/strong> \u2013 THE quarterfinals of the 2026 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) promise to be the most fiercely contested in the tournament\u2019s 69-year history.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last-eight stage, beginning Friday, underscores the continued dominance of North and West African football over the decades, with Cameroon the sole representative from Central Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This edition in Morocco has largely followed the formbook and is shaping up to be the most blockbuster AFCON ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eight of the quarterfinalists rank among the top ten in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) rankings. Except for Mali, a consistently solid performer, all are previous AFCON champions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The action kicks off with eighth-ranked Mali facing Senegal\u2019s Teranga Lions, who sit second in CAF rankings, at the Grande Stade de Tanger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later, tenth-ranked Cameroon will take on hosts Morocco, the top-ranked team, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Morocco, despite being crowned AFCON champions only once\u201450 years ago in Ethiopia\u2014boasts a golden generation that made history as the first African team to reach the World Cup semifinals in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tournament-leading scorer Ibrahim Diaz, with four goals, is the man to watch, while fellow striker Ayoub El Kaabi has dazzled with two spectacular bicycle-kick goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cameroon, by contrast, are the continent\u2019s most decorated team with five AFCON titles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Saturday, Algeria (third-ranked) face Nigeria, the fifth-ranked Super Eagles. Algeria\u2019s Riyad Mahrez and Nigeria\u2019s Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen have each scored three goals in the tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Egypt, ranked fourth in Africa, will meet holders Ivory Coast, seventh in CAF rankings, at Stade Adrar in Agadir.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Egypt\u2019s Mo Salah leads the scoring charts with three goals, matching Ivory Coast\u2019s Amad Diallo. Both Diallo and Salah, while struggling at their English clubs, have found form in national colours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With such star-studded squads and high stakes, the quarterfinals are expected to deliver intense drama and showcase some of the finest African football talent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The semifinals are scheduled for Wednesday, with the final set for Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This AFCON has not only highlighted Africa\u2019s footballing strength but also promises a riveting conclusion, with Morocco\u2019s Atlas Lions aiming to claim their long-awaited second title on home soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2013 CAJ News<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

RABAT \u2013 THE quarterfinals of the 2026 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) promise to be the most fiercely contested in the tournament\u2019s 69-year history. The last-eight stage, beginning Friday, underscores the continued dominance of North and West African football over the decades, with Cameroon the sole representative from Central Africa. This edition in Morocco has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1612,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[110,19,13],"tags":[291],"class_list":["post-1611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football-sports","category-football","category-sports","tag-senegal-vs-mali-tough-game"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game-150x150.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game-300x174.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game-768x446.jpg","large":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game-1024x595.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game.jpg","post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"administrator","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3d5ebfe727f13fb325bd400aaaf5e789d3e2e20898883d9ae8e3d3d42d58cef?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"RABAT \u2013 THE quarterfinals of the 2026 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) promise to be the most fiercely contested in the tournament\u2019s 69-year history. The last-eight stage, beginning Friday, underscores the continued dominance of North and West African football over the decades, with Cameroon the sole representative from Central Africa. This edition in Morocco has […]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["Football","Football","Sports"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":27,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":2,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game.jpg",1320,767,false],"medium":["https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game-300x174.jpg",300,174,true],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Senegal-Vs-Mali-tough-game-150x150.jpg",150,150,true]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"administrator","author_link":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/?author=2"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a3d5ebfe727f13fb325bd400aaaf5e789d3e2e20898883d9ae8e3d3d42d58cef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"Football<\/a> Football<\/a> Sports<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1611"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1624,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1611\/revisions\/1624"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1612"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/matabeletoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}