A busy Friday in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying will see 10 matches played across the continent headlined by reigning champions Ivory Coast taking their first steps toward the next tournament finals.
The Elephants, who won the AFCON in dramatic style on home soil earlier this year, will host Zambia in a Group G match in Bouake kicking off at 21:00 CAT, while at the same time 2021 champions Senegal will open their Group L fixtures at home to fellow West Africans Burkina Faso in Dakar.
Teranga Lions coach Aliou Cisse has included 19-year-old El Hadji Malick Diouf in the squad for the first time, noting that the promising Slavia Prague player will have the chance to integrate into the team.
We are looking to strengthen on the wings and on the left side, we have Ismail Jakobs and Ismaila Sarr was able to play in this sector and was effective. But having a boy like Diouf He has a good pedigree and hes only 19 years old, said Cisse.
Bringing him in very early so that he can immerse himself in the group and the realities of the selection is very, very good. There is a new generation that is arriving, I really have hope for Senegalese football.
