How to catch Tunisia-Mali, Mauritania-Gambia, and Eq. Guinea-Ivory Coast

Topics: TV Listings, TV Schedules, Tunisia, Mali, Mauritania, Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, 2021 AFCON

The 2021 AFCON tournament continues with another triple-header featuring Tunisia, Mali, Mauritania, Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, and Ivory Coast.

It's day four of the 33rd iteration of the AFCON tournament, which means more matches will be played on January 12th. Viewers again are in for a huge treat, as it's another triple header, featuring Tunisia, Mali, Mauritania, Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, and the Ivory Coast. Here's all you need to know ahead of the next installment of matches taking place this Wednesday.

A triple header of matches taking place on Wednesday, January 12th

Tunisia vs Mali: Tunisia will be seeking to get back on track after their loss to Algeria in the recent Arab Cup, and will be gearing up to battle with Mali in a match that could ultimately decide top spot in Group F. Given that Mauritania and Gambia are the other two teams in this quartet, both Tunisia and Mali will know that it's very likely that they will be the two sides battling for group winner and runners-up. And as we are all aware, finishing first or second in a group can determine whether one gets a more favorable opponent in the round of 16.

To date, Tunisia have been regular participants at the AFCON tournament, but have only won it once. The Eagles of Carthage enjoyed a successful route to this competition, winning five of their six qualifying matches and scoring 14 goals in the process. Meanwhile, Mali also have been in excellent form, both during and after AFCON qualifiers. Les Aigles won four of their six games en route to this tournament, and continued in the same vein during qualification for the 2022 World Cup. As of now, having won five of their six matches, Mali are now into the playoffs of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers and will hope that form will give them the edge over their opponents.

Mauritania vs Gambia: This game will feature two minnows, to put it simply. On one side are Mauritania, who are only making their second ever AFCON tournament, with their first taking place in 2019 when they bowed out during the group stages. On the other will be Gambia, who are one of two debutants at the 2021 AFCON tournament. Mauritania are made up of primarily youth, with even a 16-year-old, Beyatt Lekweiry, set to hopefully feature at this winter's event, while Gambia's 28-man group are also largely unexperienced. The most experienced player on Gambia's side only has 39 caps, 32-year-old defender Pa Modou Jagne, who will be hoping to steer his side through their first ever AFCON appearance.

Equatorial Guinea vs Ivory Coast: With reigning champs Algeria being held to a surprise scoreless stalemate against Sierra Leone, this could present a great chance for the Ivory Coast to seize top spot in Group E. Les Éléphants are making their 24th appearance at an AFCON tournament, which is only topped by Egypt's 25. They're making their eighth consecutive appearance and will be hoping to win their first title since 2015.

2015 was also the year during which Equatorial Guinea shocked the entire African continent - and perhaps the world at large - by finishing fourth in the competition. That impressive run helped them to rise to 49th in FIFA's rankings, which is the best ever by the nation in their entire history. However, they'll need to do much more to overcome a team who are very experienced at this competition, and have progressed to the knockout stage in seven of their last eight appearances. This will be the second meeting at an AFCON competition between Equatorial Guinea and the Ivory Coast, with Les Éléphants cruising to a 3-0 win during their last meeting a decade ago in 2012.

Who's in and who's out

Here's a quick rundown of the personnel situation for Tunisia, Mali, Mauritania, Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, and Ivory Coast ahead of their matches at the 2021 AFCON tournament:

Tunisia: No notable injuries, illness, or suspensions

Mali: Mali have been given a major boost with the return of RB Leipzig midfielder Amadou Haidara from injury.

Mauritania: No notable injuries, illness, or suspensions

Gambia: No notable injuries, illness, or suspensions

Equatorial Guinea: Pedro Obiang is out due to a bout of myocarditis since August, so won't be able to feature for his national side in what comes as a big blow

Ivory Coast: No notable injuries, illness, or suspensions

Stats and facts

Here's a quick collection of some stats and facts ahead of the latest round of 2021 AFCON matches:

Mauritania have won just two of their last 11 competitive matches (D3 L6)
Gambia are one of two debutants at the 2021 AFCON tournament
Tunisia had the most successful qualifying run to this competition, with five wins from their six matches
Mali are featuring at the AFCON tournament for the 12th time; their best result was a runners-up spot in 1972
Equatorial Guinea are making their third appearance, and hoping to top their best performance which saw them finish in fourth spot in 2015
The Ivory Coast have lost just two of their last 20 group stage games at the AFCON (W12 D6) and haven't lost a tournament opener since being defeated 2-0 by Ghana in 1996