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It looks a touch damp in Casablanca but is brightening up slightly. Rain has really been an issue in the opening few games. The crowd, like in Mali v Zambia, is very sparse.
Will Mohamed Salah still be a Liverpool player by the time Afcon concludes? John Duerden looks at the prospect of the Egyptian forward moving to Saudi.
Burkina Faso head coach Brama Traoré: “We are in Morocco to live up to our country’s reputation, and since our arrival we have focused on addressing the areas where we had shortcomings. We know that every team aims to win its first match in the tournament, and that is a legitimate objective for us as well.
“We are here to defend our national flag, and we believe this is the best tournament, with all conditions well provided. In any case, we are aiming to achieve something in this competition.
“The first match is just as important as the others. We are targeting a place in the semi-finals and want to give our very best in this tournament.”
Today’s match will be shown on 4Seven in the UK. The buildup will mainly consist of a festive episode of Frasier.
And if you need anymore hot Afcon content, I’ve done my bit.
Ed Aarons on the announcement Afcon is changing to be every four years and the impact of the decision.
Catch up with yesterday’s action at Afcon.
Starting lineups
Burkina Faso (4-3-3): Koffi; Tapsoba, Yago, Dayo, Kouassi; Quedraogo, Sangare, Toure; L Kabore, Ouattara, B Traore
Subs: Ayinde, Aziz Ki, Badolo, Bouda, Djiga, I Kabore, Irie, Monoungou, Nikiema, F Quedraogo, Simpore, L Traore, Zougrana
Equatorial Guinea (4-1-4-1): Owono; Aka, Orozco, Coco, Ndong; Mascarell; Zuniga, Machin, Ganet; Asue; Salvador
Subs: Esono, Anieboh, Balboa, Buyla, Embela, Eneme, Masogo, Obiang, Miranda, C Ondo, Nsue, J Nabil Ondo, Sapunga, Senra
If you have any memories of watching football on Christmas Eve, do let me know. I can’t really remember any …
Preamble
Festive greetings to you and your loved ones. I can’t remember many experiences of live football on Christmas Eve, so we better embrace. It is a final chance to avoid our families for a couple of hours.
Burkina Faso begin their Afcon campaign with plenty of hope. Over the past 12 years they have finished second, third and fourth, and will be optimistic of going a long way in the tournament. Sunderland’s Bertrand Traore is the skipper but there is no shortage of quality in the squad. Dango Outtarra of Brentford is the other Premier League representative, while right-back Issa Kabore, who wears the No 9 shirt, is another experienced player with over 50 caps despite only being 24 years old.
Who could forget Equatorial Guinea skipper Emilio Nsue’s spells with Middlesbrough and Birmingham? He is still going strong at 36 but is plying his trade in the Spanish third tier. The country has never qualified for the World Cup and its best Afcon performance was in 2015 when they came fourth. This year progress to the knockout stages would be their best bet, and a good start today would set them on their way.
Kick-off: 12.30pm GMT
