AFCON Betting Tips:
Outright Winner:
Morocco
Nigeria
Burkina Faso
Golden Boot:
Victor Osimhen
Victor Bonafice
Serhou Guirassy
All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
By far the most unpredictable tournament in international football, the Africa Cup of Nations returns to our screens on Saturday, January 13 and promises to provide endless entertainment over the next month.
A tournament of fantastic nicknames and beautiful kits where club form and World Cup performances go out the window, the AFCON is often notable for its surprise success stories and eye-catching flops.
It is a tournament that a star-studded Ivory Coast side featuring the likes of Yaya Toure and Didier Drogba at the peak of their powers often struggled to perform in. Meanwhile, an Egypt team that came nowhere near World Cup qualification won the tournament three times in a row in the late noughties, while Zambia and Burkina Faso have also enjoyed memorable runs, with the former winning the tournament and latter reaching the final.
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With that in mind, there is no guarantee that Morocco’s stunning form at the World Cup in December 2022 will translate into AFCON-winning form over the coming month.
However, it would be remiss to ignore Morocco’s stunning achievement of reaching the World Cup semi-final and there is a very good chance that they will retain that momentum as they bid to become continental champions for the first time in history.
They are the standout team among the favourites for the tournament and represent good value to win the tournament.
Elsewhere, Nigeria are an interesting bet to win their first AFCON since 2013.
The Super Eagles find themselves in Group A alongside hosts Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau and should comfortably qualify for the knockout stages.
Boasting an incredibly exciting attack featuring Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Bayer Leverkusen’s Victor Bonafice, who has scored 16 goals in 23 appearances for the Bundesliga leaders this season, Nigeria have the potential to score a lot of goals at the AFCON.
AC Milan’s Samuel Chukwueze, who will be familiar to Newcastle fans following an excellent performance at St. James’ Park last month, also has the potential to set the tournament alight.
Nigeria are certainly a tempting bet to win the tournament ahead of Saturday night’s opener.
Anyone looking for an outside bet may be tempted by Burkina Faso, who topped their group in qualifying.
It is 11 years since Burkina Faso finished as AFCON runners up in South Africa, but they have performed commendably at recent editions of the tournament, reaching the semi-finals in both 2017 and 2021.
At a huge price, they are very much a dark horse but might just give you a run for your money and are worth an each-way bet.
The race for the Golden Boot also promises to be incredibly exciting, with some of football’s best forwards competing.
It will be interesting to see if Sadio Mane’s form has been affected by his move to a low-quality league in Saudi Arabia, while Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah comes into the tournament on the back of a phenomenal display in the win over Newcastle on New Year’s Day.
Osimhen, who scored a sensational 31 goals in 39 games last season, has struggled to reach those lofty heights this time around, scoring just eight goals in 18 appearances for Napoli.
However, he was by far the most prolific goalscorer in AFCON qualifying, scoring twice as many goals as the next-highest scorer.
Osimhen has scored an outstanding 20 goals in 27 caps for Nigeria and represents decent value to win the Golden Boot, especially if they go far in the tournament.
However, his international teammate Boniface is a tempting bet.He has not scored in his five appearances for Nigeria but may just announce himself on the international scene at the upcoming tournament.
Elsewhere, Serhou Guirassy represents a decent value as an outside bet.
The Guinea striker has scored an incredible 17 Bundesliga goals in 14 appearances this season, scoring 10 goals in his opening five games.
Guinea find themselves in a particularly nasty group alongside Cameroon, Senegal, and Gambia, and will need Guirassy on top form if they are to progress to the knockout stages.
AFCON Betting Tips:
Outright Winner:
Morocco
Nigeria
Burkina Faso
Golden Boot:
Victor Osimhen
Victor Bonafice
Serhou Guirassy
All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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