Winners of Guinea (3-1) on Friday, the Leopards will play the sixth CAN semi-final in their history, facing the winner of Mali-Côte d’Ivoire.
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Even injured, a Leopard remains dangerous. This is the moral that we can draw from the quarter-final of the African Cup of Nations between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Guinea, won by the Congolese (3-1), Friday February 2 at Alassane Ouattara stadium in Abidjan. Because, if the teammates of Marseillais Chancel Mbemba validated their place for the semi-finals, it was not without suffering.
And for good reason, it was Guinea, outsiders at kick-off, who opened the scoring thanks to Le Havre Mohamed Bayo, from the penalty spot (0-1, 21st). Surprised after a good start to the match, the Congolese did not give themselves time to doubt. From a corner, it was captain Chancel Mbemba who quickly equalized, with a powerful shot at the far post (1-1, 27th).
First victory for the DRC in this CAN
Then the Leopards multiplied the situations, before being delivered on a contentious penalty transformed by Yoane Wissa (2-1, 65th). Physically marked and technically dominated, the Guineans then surrendered. Inspired, Arthur Masuaku then released a stroke of genius, on an off-center free kick, along the touchline, sent into the top corner by the left side of Besiktas (3-1, 82nd).
The DRC thus qualifies for the sixth semi-final of the African Cup of Nations in its history, the first since 2015. It did so by winning its first match in the competition, since until now the Leopards had drawn against Zambia, Tanzania and Morocco in pools, before beating Egypt on penalties in the round of 16 (1-1, 8-7 tab). The DRC will meet either Mali or Ivory Coast in the last four, on February 7.