- To underline their dominance, Senegal have not lost a competitive game since their 3-0 loss to England at the 2022 Fifa World Cup.
- Cote d'Ivoire sneacked into the round of 16 as the fourth-best third-placed team in the group stage.
Image: /FILE
Africa Cup of Nations defending champions Senegal will be aiming to seal their place in the quarter-finals when they play Cote d'Ivoire in a heavyweight clash on Monday.
There will be fireworks at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium as the Lions of Teranga who have won just one Afcon trophy fancy their chances against the hosts who were unconvincing in the group stages.
This all-West African affair will pit two sides who had realistic aspirations to go all the way and another heavyweight will suffer an early ouster here.
While surprise packages Equatorial Guinea and Cape Verde claimed most of the headlines in the group stages, the Teranga Lions breezed through the group stage, winning all three games to book their spot in the knockout round as Group C winners with a 100 per cent record.
Their last group game came in a routine 2-0 victory over Guinea after they had already secured their spot in the round of 16. Abdoulaye Seck and Iliman Ndiaye scored second-half goals to help Alou Cisse's side claim the win.
They kicked off their Afcon campaign with a solid 3-0 win in match one against Gambia before outclassing Cameroon 3-1 in the second game.
Senegal have conceded just one goal and have the joint-best defensive record in the competition. Senegal have kept a first-half clean sheet in each of their last nine games.
To underline their dominance, Senegal have not lost a competitive game since their 3-0 loss to England at the 2022 Fifa World Cup.
Cote d'Ivoire, meanwhile, sneaked into the round of 16 as the fourth-best third-placed team in the group stage.
The Elephants suffered an embarrassing 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Equatorial Guinea in their final group game, resulting in the sacking of coach Jean-Louis Gasset before the final qualification places were even confirmed.
They have appointed former international Emerse Fae to oversee proceedings for the rest of their stay in the tournament.
Cote d'Ivoire claimed a 2-0 opening round win over Guinea-Bissau but were beaten 1-0 in match two by Nigeria.
Scoring goals have been a problem for the hosts whose last eight competitive games have seen one side fail to find the back of the net.
The winner of this titanic battle will face either Mali or Burkina Faso, who square off on Tuesday evening in Korhogo.
Sadio Mane is a sure bet to start for Senegal having contributed to a goal in each of his group-stage games (one goal, two assists) for Aliou Cisse's side.
Cote d'Ivoire right-back Serge Aurier will hope to be restored to the starting lineup after dropping to the bench against Equatorial Guinea while the Ivorians will still be without striker Sebastien Haller who has yet to feature in this competition due to an ankle injury.
Senegal and Ivory Coast met in the last Afcon in the group stage, with the Lions of Teranga winning 1-0 thanks to a goal from Moussa Ndiaye in what was the most recent meeting between the teams.
It remains to be seen whether Senegal will continue with their rich form or the hosts will turn the tables over their rivals.