Ivorian legendary striker Didier Drogba, who was one of the four draw assistants during Thursday’s 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) draw in Abidjan, said he is relishing his nation’s performances in their ‘tough group’ ahead of next year’s tournament.
The former Chelsea forward described the group as an exciting challenge, as the hosts will be hoping to make home advantage count and power to their third AFCON triumph.
The groups are set. ✅#TotalEnergiesAFCON2023 is now ready to kick off in January! ????????⚽️ pic.twitter.com/Xxanb9FDzp
— CAF (@CAF_Online) October 12, 2023
Drogba, Cote d’Ivoire’s all-time leading scorer, said he is excited to see his country play the Super Eagles, and he is sure it will be a tough but thrilling encounter.
“It is a very difficult group. Nigeria is of course one of the favorites, and to have them in our group is going to be an exciting challenge,” the 45-year-old said.
“But we are up for it. This is the beauty of a competition like AFCON, so we are ready to take on the challenge and let the best teams of this group and all the groups qualify.”
Ivory Coast were drawn in Group A alongside three-time winners Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, and West African neighbours Guinea-Bissau, during the final draws which took place at the brand-new Parc des Expositions building
Ivory Coast, two-time champions in 1992 and 2015, head into the tournament as one of the favorites along with Nigeria, and they boast a huge array of talents, including the Turkey-based duo of Wilfried Zaha and Eric Bailly and Nottingham Forest stars Serge Aurier, Willy Boly, and Ibrahim Sangare.
Nigeria will also head into the competition with arguable Africa’s best striker, Osimhen, who scored the most goals (10) in the qualifying rounds, along with other stars like Alex Iwobi, Taiwo Awoniyi, Victor Boniface, and Wilfried Ndidi.
Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau are seen as the underdogs of the group as they have yet to win the competition, but the Djurtus have proven themselves to not be pushovers, having defeated the Eagles in the qualifiers.
The 2023 AFCON, which is the 34th edition of the tournament, will kick off next year on January 13 until February 11 across six cities.
