- Anything less than a victory will result in huge disappointment for the Ivorians.
- A point will be enough for Equatorial Guinea to secure a place in the round of 16.
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Africa Cup of Nations hosts Cote d’Ivoire face a defining moment as they settle scores with Equatorial Guinea in the last match in Group A on Monday.
The match is a must-win for the Elephants after they tumbled to a 1-0 loss against rivals Nigeria in their second group match courtesy of Troost Ekong's second-half penalty.
The former Watford defender scored from the spot in the 55th minute to condemn the 2015 Afcon winners to their first loss in this year's showpiece which happens to be the 34th edition of the biennial championship.
Cote d'Ivoire, who have won the continent's premier competition just twice despite being a football-mad country, are third in the group with three points after their opening day convincing 2-0 victory against minnows Guinea Bissau.
The Serge Aurier-captained side have three points while both Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria have four to rank first and second respectively by goal difference.
Cote d'Ivoire will be guaranteed automatic qualification with a win at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Ebimpe.
Anything less than a victory will result in huge disappointment for the Ivorians who have shown massive support for the host nation in their two fixtures.
Cote d'Ivoire must solve their goal-scoring problems after firing blanks against Nigeria despite dominating possession. Their only goals so far were scored by Seko Fofana and Jean-Philip Krasso.
Despite being favourites on paper, it will not be smooth sailing for them against a Group A topping side who are high in confidence following their 1-1 opening draw against Nigeria which was followed by an emphatic 4-2 win over Guinea-Bissau.
A point will be enough for Equatorial Guinea to secure a place in the round of 16 but Juan Micha will most likely want to cause the biggest upset of the ongoing competition by overcoming the Elephants and being the nation to knock them out of the competition they are hosting.
This will be the third meeting between the two sides in the Afcon and Jean Louis Gasset's side need an all-round performance to prevail against their tricky opponents.
Cote d’Ivoire won the first two which was a 3-0 quarter-final win in 2012 followed by a 1-0 win in the group stages in Cameroon.
The match will be played simultaneously with the other Group A meeting between Nigeria and Guinea-Bissau scheduled at the Stade Félix Houphouët Boigny in Abidjan.