2023 AFCON: Guinea v Gambia preview

by Thando Mpembe

Thursday Jan 18, 2024. 20:29

Guinea are gearing up to face Gambia in their next 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) encounter on Friday evening at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium.

Date: 19 January 2024

Kick-off: 22h00 CAT

Head-to-head: The upcoming match on Friday will be the 25th time that the two teams have faced off. Guinea has won seven of their past meetings, while Gambia has won two fewer. The two teams have also drawn 12 times.

Guinea last three results: Guinea drew their opening AFCON fixture against Cameroon 1-1. They defeated Nigeria 2-0 in a friendly previously and lost 1-0 to Botswana in their last three matches across all competitions.

Gambia last three results: Gambia suffered a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of current AFCON champions Senegal in their previous match. They were beaten 2-0 by Ivory Coast and 3-2 by Burundi respectively in their 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Team news: After receiving a straight red card against Cameroon, François Kamano will be suspended for this game. Morgan Guilavogui is expected to take his place.

Not only was Serhou Guirassy missing the first game for Guinea, but Liverpool’s Naby Keita, who is recovering from an injury, was also missing from action. Both players are still listed as doubtful for this important match on Friday.

Gambia’s Ebou Adams will most likely have to watch this one from the sidelines as a result of his red card against Senegal. Hamza Barry is most likely to start alongside LASK’s Ebrima Darboe in the midfield.

Key player – Guinea: Serhou Guirassy will be a key member in the attack should he be cleared as fit for the match. The Stuttgart striker is currently the second top goal scorer in the Bundesliga this season with 17 goals.

Key player – Gambia: Ali Some who was given a nod in the attack in Gambia’s last fixture will be looking to do one better and score against Guinea coming off the back of the defeat against Senegal.