Equatorial Guinea convincingly defeated host Ivory Coast 4-0 in a surprising turn of events on Monday to advance as Group A winners in the AFCON, leaving the hosts facing an early exit.
Initially, Ivory Coast appeared to be the more dominant side, creating several opportunities to take the lead, but former Arsenal star Nicolas Pepe squandered chances in front of goal.
The turning point came in the 42nd minute when Equatorial Guinea’s captain, Emilio Nsue, broke the deadlock with a precise strike.
Carlos Akapo’s brilliant solo run into the penalty area set up Nsue, who calmly slotted the ball home.
Ivory Coast had two goals disallowed on either side of halftime after VAR checks deemed scorers Ibrahim Sangare and Jean-Philippe Krasso to be in offside positions.
As Ivory Coast pressed for an equalizer, Equatorial Guinea scored two quick goals to seal the game’s fate.
In the 73rd minute, Pablo Ganet netted a stunning curling free-kick from nearly 20 yards out. Two minutes later, Nsue completed his brace.
In the 88th minute, second-half substitute Jannick Buyla scored the fourth and final goal, completing a remarkable rout against the Elephants. The result is likely to be remembered as one of the biggest shocks in tournament history.
In the same group, Nigeria secured their spot by defeating Guinea-Bissau 1-0 in another crucial match on Monday.
The winner came when Opa Sangante diverted a Moses Simon cross into his own net nine minutes before the break.
Both sides had goals ruled out in the second half for offside, while Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen also had an effort disallowed for handball.
Jose Peseiro’s side finished second in Group A behind Equatorial Guinea.
The Super Eagles will face the second-placed side from Group C, which will be Senegal, Guinea or Cameroon, in the last 16 on Saturday (20:00 GMT).
