Senegal out to end Equatorial Guinea's fairytale run

Senegal will go head to head with Equatorial Guinea in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) quarterfinal match at the Stade Omnisport Ahmadou Ahidjo in Cameroon on Sunday.

Kick-off is at 9:00 pm CAT.

The Lions of Teranga kept their ambition of winning their first-ever Afcon title on track by securing a 2-0 victory over Cape Verde in their Round of 16 encounter which was played on Tuesday.

Coach Aliou Cisse's side has been boosted by the availability of Ismaila Sarr, who has joined the Senegalese camp after recovering from an injury, while Sadio Mane is likely to feature against Equatorial Guinea following his injury scare during the team’s clash with Cape Verde.

Bamba Dieng, the Senegal forward, has stated that they will continue to improve with every game after he scored the Lions of Teranga's second goal in their win over the Blue Sharks of Cape Verde.

"We are delighted as a team to have qualified for the quarterfinals," Dieng, who was named Man of the Match after their game against the Blue Sharks, told the media.

"And on a personal note, I am happy to have earned the man of the match away in what was a good and well-coordinated game with my teammates.

“We will continue to improve with every game as we hope to go all the way in the competition.”

Meanwhile, Equatorial Guinea reached the quarterfinals of the Afcon quarterfinals for the third time following their 6-5 win over Mali on penalties in their Round of 16 match which took place on Wednesday.

The National Thunder have not reported any injuries and positive Covid-19 cases in their camp ahead of this clash and this has surely boosted coach Juan Micha's team selection.

Pablo Ganet, the Equatorial Guinea midfielder, who was named Man of the Match after the clash with Mali, is expecting a difficult game against Senegal.

"We are a small country. We don't have a star - our star is the team," Ganet told the media after receiving the accolade.

"If they respect us, ok. If they didn't respect us it is up to them, but we showed our value. We played with our heads.

"The following match against Senegal will be similarly as hard – or considerably harder – and they should attempt to take their chances.”

The last meeting between Senegal and Equatorial Guinea was on 17 November 2018.

Senegal claimed a 1-0 win over Equatorial Guinea 1in the 2019 Afcon qualifier which was played at the Estadio de Bata in Bata.