We've all heard plenty of bark about the absence of 'big-name' teams in this year's Africa Cup of Nations, but besides co-hosts Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, it seems none of the underdogs took the opportunity to show their bite.
As we all know the 2012 AFCON finals kicked off on January 21 without defending champions and seven-time winners Egypt, fellow African big hitters Cameroon, two-time continental kings Nigeria and international almosts South Africa, who all failed to make it past the qualifying round.
The voids left by the absence of those decorated footballing nations were filled by the likes of fairy-tale qualifiers Botswana, footballing nobodies Niger and a Guinea side who huffed and puffed but ultimately saw the door slammed in their face.
Looking at the Zebras, they traveled to Central Africa with all the hopes and dreams of a first-time college student striding through campus on orientation day, and their qualification for the AFCON finals as winners of their group led many to believe Stanley Tshosane's men would prove straight-A students.
Alas, the dream of being awarded a doctorate in the field of African football was one that failed to come even close to fruition, with captain Mompati Thuma and Co. having failed to collect a single point in the group, scoring just two goals and conceding nine.
From one of the neutrals' favourites to just plain neutral. Maybe 'neutered' is more accurate.
Over to Niger then. These plucky qualifying Group G table toppers earned their spot in the finals ahead of Bafana Bafana, who as you might recall thought their 0-0 draw against Sierra Leone in their final qualifying game was enough to go through to the finals after Niger had lost 3-0 to Egypt. But how wrong those assumptions turned out to be.
A quick CAF ruling cleared the air and it was the Menas who emerged as group victors. That, however, was as good as it got for Harouna Doula's men.
Niger were completely steam-rolled in Group C and succumbed to Gabon, Tunisia and Morocco, taking just one solitary goal home as a consolation. It took them 55 years to reach an AFCON finals, and it might take them another 55 years to return.
The last remaining hopes of an unfancied team progressing to the first knockout round rode on the shoulders of Guinea, who, remember, progressed to the finals at the expense of Nigeria.
Victory for Syli Nationale over Ghana in the final round of Group D matches would have secured the side top spot heading into the last eight, although the two sides would eventually end the match 1-1. That result meant Mali's 2-1 victory over Botswana in the night's other encounter was enough to see the Eagles soar through to the quarter-finals alongside the Black Stars.
So while we can still expect some monstrous encounters in the knockout phases, with the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Tunisia and unbeaten co-hosts Gabon all still in it, the lack of that 'underdog' atmosphere in the tournament may just have chased some of the magic out of the affair.
By Ryan Gordon
Got something to add? Why not get involved by sending us your own thoughts or opinion to football@teamtalkmedia.com and we'll share your words with the world.
Post A Comment!
Be the first to post a comment on this story