Wednesday, February 2
•Burkina Faso Vs Senegal – 10pm
Senegal coach Aliou Cisse says that their semifinal clash with Burkina Faso will be difficult as the two sides meet at Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé for a place in the final.
Cisse, who captained the famous Senegal team of 2002 World Cup, wants to become the first coach to win the AFCON title for the Lions of Teranga.
The tactician said that his side is ready for Wednesday’s clash with the Stallions.
“We prepared well for our semi-final against Burkina Faso, even if we didn’t have a lot of time. We focused on recovery,” Cisse is quoted by CAF.
“We know Burkina Faso team well; they remain a good team that is progressing with good players. We are expecting a difficult match, but we are ready.
“I am thinking of doing everything to pass this milestone of the semi-finals. We hope and work to win this African title. We have never doubted our abilities. Our desire is to play the grand final on February 6th.”
Senegal have never won the AFCON title and have lost the final twice – 2002 and 2019.
To reach this stage, they topped Group D after beating Zimbabwe and two goalless draws against Guinea and Malawi. They eliminated Cape Verde and Equatorial Guinea in knockout.
Burkina Faso on the other hand, came second in Group A behind leaders Cameroon.
The Stallions lost to the hosts in the opener, beat Cape Verde before drawing 1-1 with Ethiopia. In the knockout, they ejected Gabon via shootouts before edging Tunisia.
They will miss Dango Ouattara who scored the lone goal against Tunisia in the quarterfinals before he was sent off for an elbow later in the game.
Kamou Malo, Coach of Burkina Faso, stated: “Personally, I achieved my goal, but as a competitor I aim to win the trophy next Sunday. We are determined to go all the way to win the title. Against Senegal, a great footballing country, we have to be ourselves. The main thing is to play our usual game.”
Burkina Faso will be playing in their fourth AFCON semifinal – They were beaten finalist in South Africa 2013, finished 3rd in Gabon 2017 and 4th in 1998 on home soil.
