Ivory Coast claimed their third Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title, and first on home soil, as they came from behind to beat Nigeria 2-1 in the final in Abidjan’s Alassane Ouattara Stadium.
Backed by the expectant home crowd, the hosts made an assured start, as Sébastien Haller, who scored the winning goal in the semi-final against DR Congo, almost got on the end of Simon Adingra’s dangerous cross.
Veteran Max Gradel then produced the acrobatics with an overhead kick that hit the side-netting before Adingra forced a smart save from Stanley Nwabili. Nigeria were on the back foot, but in the 38th minute, they got the breakthrough against the run of play with their first real chance in the game. Captain William Troost-Ekong, who scored in the 1-0 win against Ivory Coast in the group stage, climbed highest to power his header home
following a corner routine and give the Super Eagles an unlikely HT lead.
With the majority of the 60,000-strong crowd roaring them on, Ivory Coast pushed for an equaliser early in the second half, as Gradel saw his fierce shot brilliantly blocked by Calvin Bassey after some neat work from Adingra.
Odilon Kossounou then forced a quality save from Nwabili from long range, and from the resulting corner, the Elephants struck back. Franck Kessié headed in unmarked at the far post for his second goal of the tournament, as the stadium sprung to life after the hour-mark.
With the end of regulation time approaching, Haller almost produced the perfect moment after his battle with cancer to put the hosts in front, but his bicycle kick flew just wide after a nice set-up from Adingra. However, the striker did not have to wait long for another chance to become his country’s hero, poking home the winner from Adingra’s perfect cross to send the Ivorian fans wild.
Nigeria fought hard but the Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder was at the heart of everything good in Ivory Coast’s attack, producing a special performance in his first major international tournament. After a disastrous group stage that almost saw the Elephants eliminated, it was all worth it for a night that will live long in every Ivorian’s memories.
