Key events
That’s it from me. Thanks for reading and for your emails and tweets.
Congratulations to Ivory Coast and roll on Sunday! What a final that is against Nigeria.
Cheers!
Jonathan Wilson’s match report
Franck Kessié is named player of the match. He certainly had a good game in midfield, but I would have been tempted to go for Adingra, who caused havoc for DR Congo all across the forward line.
An email from Kári Tulinius:
Sébastien Haller has had such a strange match. He’s clearly not fully fit, and while his body isn’t performing at full capacity, his intelligence has seen him take advantage of every mistake by the Congolese defense. If he were at his normal level, he’d have a hat-trick by now. Not that he’ll care, if his single goal gets the Elephants to their date with destiny.
From the first whistle until Haller scored, Ivory Coast’s fans in the stands all looked they’d been emotionally wrung out by the madcap journey from the opening match to the semi-final. Now, at the final whistle, they look fully revived. I know where in the world I’d like to party tonight.
Yep, Haller was not at his best but ultimately proved the matchwinner. Initially, I thought it might have been bad goalkeeping from the DR Congo keeper Mpasi, but replays show that the ball had a vicious topspin after bouncing off the turf. The ball shot up in the air and dipped wickedly below the crossbar. No keeper in the world was saving that. A lucky goal, perhaps, but Ivory Coast created more than enough to win.
It was a fierce atmosphere and that seemed to really play a part for Ivory Coast. Remember it was in Abidjan that Ivory Coast lost 4-0 to Equatorial Guinea in the group stage. Now they are 90 minutes away from winning the Africa Cup of Nations in their own country.
Disappointment for DR Congo and a repeat of the 2015 semi-final.
DR Congo started both halves with real impetus and verve, and could have easily taken the lead. But they faded badly, and really didn’t look like scoring towards the end.
Full-time: Ivory Coast 1-0 DR Congo
A deserved win for the hosts, who will face Nigeria in the Afcon final!
90+4 min: Ivory Coast look more likely to score than DR Congo, who look completely disjointed in attack. They can’t get anything going. Instead Bamba goes through on goal, rounds Mpasi, but can’t get his pass back to a teammate. Corner to Ivory Coast, and they will surely waste more time now.
90+2 min: With DR Congo now pouring forward, there are gaps at the back. Amani is so close to breaking in on goal, but only a brilliant last-ditch tackle from DR Congo’s Baka stops the Ivory Coast substitute from bearing down on goal.
90 min: Five nervy minutes added on here.
88 min: It’s been 18 years since a host nation made an Afcon final: Egypt in 2006. Ivory Coast have a chance to do exactly that as they try to waste a few more seconds with a couple more substitutions. Gradel and Haller come off for Boga and Krasso. Replays show that Boga had his shirt on backwards as he tried to come on! He was corrected by a teammate.
My word, though, Ivory Coast do have strength in depth. Remember Wilfried Zaha didn’t even make the squad this tournament.
86 min: Seko Fofana, now on the Ivory Coast bench, is acting a sort of cheerleader in front of the home supporters, whipping them into a frenzy as he roars and throws his arms around. Didier Drogba looks nervously on, as the cameras pan to him. Ivory Coast look comfortable here, but this has been a tournament of late twists!
84 min: Ivory Coast make another change: Jonathan Bamba, the subject of a many a transfer rumour over the years while he was at Lille, comes on for the excellent Simon Adingra.
82 min: DR Congo break on the counter attack. Bongonda breaks one challenge on the half-way line and for a moment it looks like he has a clear path to goal, but a slight dalliance with a dribble allows Konan to get back and make a tackle.
78 min: Ivory Coast deserve to be ahead, which is completely at odds with the rest of their tournament. They have been always been the chasers, and have sneaked their knockout wins in extra-time and in a penalty shootout. Now they must manage the game out as the leaders.
76 min: Elia has a snapshot from the edge of Ivory Coast’s area, volleying just wide. I think that is just the second DR Congo attempt on goal this second half, after Bongonda’s early effort. They do not look like a team chasing this game. The subs thus far have failed to make an impact.
74 min: Another cooling break. DR Congo are not dead yet.
72 min: Haller so nearly doubles Ivory Coast’s lead! Inches from 2-0! An awful defensive header from Kalulu (I think) gifts possession to Haller, who races through on goal. With Mpasi off his line, Haller takes a first time shot, lobbing the DR Congo keeper, but his effort bounces inches wide!
70 min: Triple change for DR Congo. Manager Sébastien Desabre is rolling the dice. Cedric Bakambu, Yoane Wissa and Charles Pickel are replaced by Aaron Tshibola, Fiston Mayele and Simon Banza. That is a big call, taking off your two experienced forwards in Bakumbu and Wissa.
68 min: I can’t show you a video of the goal, but it was basically the footballing equivalent of this.
GOAL! Ivory Coast 1-0 DR Congo (Haller 65)
Haller scores and the Alassane Ouattara Stadium explodes! The Ivory Coast empties as the hosts celebrate! Not only is that Haller’s first goal at this tournament, but his first shot on target! Gradel works some room on the right wing, digs a hopeful cross out and Haller finds some space as he peels off to the back. The Dortmund striker takes the cross first time on the volley, the ball smashes into the ground and bounces high into the air, looping over Mpasi and into the corner! Wow. Not the cleanest strike, but Haller won’t care!
62 min: Changes for Ivory Coast: Amani and Nottingham Forest’s Sangaré on for Seko Fofana and Seri.
60 min: That was Ivory Coast’s first shot on target, by the way. Not that it’s been a bad game, mind. It’s just the hosts have been wasteful.
58 min: Good strike from Kessié! Some good play from Seri and Gradel helps the ball find Kessié is acres of space on the edge of DR Congo’s box. He has options left and right, but goes alone with a ferocious left-footed strike. It’s straight at Mpasi, who punches it away. Better from Ivory Coast.
56 min: Haller is growing increasingly frustrated at Ivory Coast’s build-up play, which is pretty slow. The Dortmund man holds his hands up in the air at his teammates.
53 min: A missed opportunity for Ivory Coast, as Seko Fofana just need to poke a simple pass through to Adingra, but the Al Nassr midfielder fails to get the connection on the pass to beat Baka.
50 min: Seko Fofana and Kessié are to big units in the Ivory Coast midfield, but both have guile and class to boot. The latter, Kessié, is running the show. Pickel is struggling to deal with the former Milan man.
48 min: Bongonda nearly scores with his first touches of the ball! DR Congo’s Belgium-born winger controls a tricky pass instantly, beats Seri with a neat shimmy, ghosts past Ndicka and fires wide from just eight yards out. It was an acute angle from the right but Bongonda will be disappointed not to hit the target, he did the hard part!
Peeeeeeeep! Looks like there is one change and it’s for DR Congo: Bongonda comes on for Kakuta. This is now the DR Congo XI that started the win over Guinea in the quarter-finals.
The players belatedly re-emerge from the dressing rooms. Wily Boly is sporting some sort of bandage on his head, Terry Butcher style. Ah, he’s taken it off, and appears to have some sort of cut above his left eye.
Coverage moved swiftly from the first semi-final to this match, so I missed the pre-match national anthems, but I should also flag the gestures made by DR Congo players. Their collective response is related to the ongoing conflict in their country.
Powerful moment from DR Congo squad. They used the national anthem to raise awareness for the atrocities ongoing in Eastern Congo. 🇨🇩🤐 pic.twitter.com/BzYFaCGRWR
— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) February 7, 2024
This is a useful reference for what is going on in the country.
