All looks to be set for the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON 2019).
Last month, experts declared that the hosts, Egypt ‘will be ready’ when the tournament kicks off in June.
Last weekend, the 24 participating teams were confirmed, including three nations; Burundi, Mauritania and Madagascar, participating for the first time.
In this article, we profile all the teams that have qualified for the continent’s most prestigious football tournament.
Algeria
Qualifying results: Benin 2-0 home 0-1 away, Gambia 1-1 1-1, Togo 1-0 4-1
Scorers: Bounedjah 3, Mahrez 2, Abeid, Attal, Bensebaini, Hanni 1 each
Coach: Djamel Belmadi (ALG)
Africa/world rankings: 13/69
Previous appearances: 17
Best placing: champions (1990)
Angola
Qualifying: Burkina Faso 2-1 1-3, Botswana 1-0 1-0, Mauritania 4-1 0-1
Scorers: Mateus 4, Gelson 3, Djalma, Eduardo 1 each
Coach: Srdjan Vasiljevic (SRB)
Africa/world rankings: 33/125
Previous appearances: 7
Best placing: quarter-finals (2008, 2010)
Burundi
Qualifying: South Sudan 3-0 5-2, Gabon 1-1 1-1, Mali 1-1 0-0
Scorers: Abdul Razak 6, Amissi 3, Berahino, Duhayindavyi 1 each
Coach: Olivier Niyungeko (BDI)
Africa/world rankings: 38/139
Previous appearances: none
Benin
Qualifying: Gambia 1-0 1-3, Togo 2-1 0-0, Algeria 1-0 0-2
Scorers: Mounie 2, D’Almeida, Djigla, Sessegnon 1 each
Coach: Michel Dussuyer (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 20/94
Previous appearances: 3
Best placing: first round
Cameroon
Qualifying: Morocco 1-0 0-2, Comoros 3-0 1-1, Malawi 1-0 0-0
Scorers: Choupo-Moting 2, Aboubakar, Bahoken, Bassogog, N’Jie 1 each
Coach: Clarence Seedorf (NED)
Africa/world rankings: 7/56
Previous appearances: 18
Best placing: champions (1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2017)
Democratic Republic of Congo
Qualifying: Congo Brazzaville 3-1 1-1, Liberia 1-0 1-1, Zimbabwe 1-2 1-1
Scorers: Bakambu 3, Bolasie, Elia, Kasongo, Mbemba 1 each, Hadebe (ZIM)-og
Coach: Florent Ibenge (COD)
Africa/world rankings: 5/51
Previous appearances: 18
Best placing: champions (1968, 1974)
Egypt
Qualifying: Tunisia 3-2 0-1, Niger 6-0 1-1, eSwatini (formerly Swaziland) 4-1 2-0
Scorers: Salah 4, Hassan 3, M. Mohsen 2, Ashraf, Hegazy, S. Mohsen, Elneny, A. el * Mohamady, B. el Mohamady, Warda 1 each
Coach: Javier Aguirre (MEX)
Africa/world rankings: 8/57
Previous appearances: 23
Best placing: champions (1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010)
Ghana
Qualifying: Ethiopia 5-0 2-0, Kenya 1-0 0-1
Scorers: J. Ayew, Dwamena 2 each, Boye, Ekuban, Gyan, Ofori 1 each
Coach: James Kwesi Appiah (GHA)
Africa/world rankings: 6/53
Previous appearances: 21
Best placing: champions (1963, 1965, 1978, 1982)
Guinea
Qualifying: Ivory Coast 1-1 3-2, Central African Republic 1-0 0-0, Rwanda 2-0 1-1
Scorers: Kamano 2, Cisse, Diallo, Kante, Keïta, Soumah, Yattara 1 each
Coach: Paul Put (BEL)
Africa/world rankings: 12/68
Previous appearances: 11
Best placing: runners-up (1976)
Guinea-Bissau
Qualifying: Namibia 1-0 0-0, Mozambique 2-2 2-2, Zambia 2-1 1-2
Scorers: F. Mendy 3, Piqueti 2, Embalo, Gomes, Silva 1 each
Coach: Baciro Cande (GNB)
Africa/world rankings: 31/118
Previous appearances: 1
Best placing: first round
Ivory Coast
Qualifying: Guinea 2-3 1-1, Rwanda 3-0 2-1, Central African Republic 4-0 0-0
Scorers: Bailly, Cornet, Doumbia, Kodjia 2 each, Doukoure, Gradel, Pepe, Seri 1 each
Coach: Ibrahim Kamara (CIV)
Africa/world rankings: 11/66
Previous appearances: 22
Best placing: champions (1992, 2015)
Kenya
Qualifying: Ghana 1-0 0-1, Ethiopia 3-0 0-0
Scorers: Johana, Olunga, Wanyama 1 each, Opoku (GHA)-og
Coach: Sebastien Migne (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 23/106
Previous appearances: 5
Best placing: first round
Madagascar
Qualifying: Sao Tome e Principe 3-2 1-0, Sudan 1-3 3-1, Senegal 2-2 0-2, Equatorial Guinea 1-0 1-0
Scorers: Andriamatsinoro, Andriatsima, Voavy 3 each, Rakotoharimalala 1, Diogo (STP)-og, Coulibaly (SEN)-og
Coach: Nicolas Dupuis (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 24/107
Previous appearances: none
READ MORE: Madagascar heads to AFCON 2019 after historic qualification
Mali
Qualifying: Gabon 2-1 1-0, South Sudan 3-0 3-0, Burundi 0-0 1-1
Scorers: S. Coulibaly, Traore 2 each, Bissouma, K. Coulibaly, Djenepo, Doumbia, Fofana, Marega 1 each
Coach: Mohamed Magassouba (MLI)
Africa/world rankings: 10/65
Previous appearances: 10
Best placing: runners-up (1972)
Mauritania
Qualifying: Botswana 2-1 1-0, Burkina Faso 2-0 0-1, Angola 1-0 1-4
Scorers: Diakite 3, Ba, Camara, El Hacen, Soudani 1 each
Coach: Corentin Martins (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 18/84
Previous appearances: none
READ MORE: Mauritania secures historic Afcon qualification
Morocco
Qualifying: Cameroon 2-0 0-1, Malawi 3-0 0-0, Comoros 1-0 2-2
Scorers: Ziyech 3, En-Nesyri 2, Amrabat, Boutaib, Fajr 1 each
Coach: Herve Renard (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 3/43
Previous appearances: 16
Best placing: champions (1976)
Namibia
Qualifying: Guinea-Bissau 0-0 0-1, Zambia 1-1 1-4, Mozambique 1-0 2-1
Scorers: Shalulile 2, Hotto, Shilembi, Shilongo 1 each
Coach: Ricardo Mannetti (NAM)
Africa/world rankings: 26/110
Previous appearances: 2
Best placing: first round
Nigeria
Qualifying: South Africa 0-2 1-1, Seychelles 3-1 3-0, Libya 4-0 3-2
Scorers: Ighalo 7, Musa 2, Awaziem, Kalu, Onyekuru, Simon 1 each, Mkhwanazi (RSA)-og
Coach: Gernot Rohr (GER)
Africa/world rankings: 4/46
Previous appearances: 17
Best placing: champions (1980, 1994, 2013)
Senegal
Qualifying: Equatorial Guinea 3-0 1-0, Madagascar 2-0 2-2, Sudan 3-0 1-0
Scorers: Niang 3, Gueye, Sow 2 each, Cisse, Keita, Konate, Sarr 1 each, Meseguer (GEQ)-og
Coach: Aliou Cisse (SEN)
Africa/world rankings: 1/24
Previous appearances: 14
Best placing: runners-up (2002)
South Africa
Qualifying: Nigeria 1-1 2-0, Libya 0-0 2-1, Seychelles 6-0 0-0
Scorers: Tau 4, Mothiba 2, Hlatshwayo, Mokoena, Ndlovu, Rantie 1 each, Hoareau (SEY)-og
Coach: Stuart Baxter (ENG)
Africa/world rankings: 14/74
Previous appearances: 9
Best placing: champions (1996)
Tanzania
Qualifying: Lesotho 1-1 0-1, Uganda 3-0 0-0, Cape Verde 2-0 0-3
Scorers: Msuva, Samatta 2 each, Morris, Nyoni 1 each
Coach: Emmanuel Amunike (NGR)
Africa/world rankings: 37/137
Previous appearances: 1
Best placing: first round
Tunisia
Qualifying: Egypt 1-0 2-3, eSwatini 4-0 2-0, Niger 1-0 2-1
Scorers: Sliti 4, Chaouat, Khenissi, Meriah 2 each, Badri, S. Ben Youssef 1 each
Coach: Alain Giresse (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 2/28
Previous appearances: 18
Best placing: champions (2004)
Uganda
Qualifying: Cape Verde 1-0 1-0, Tanzania 0-0 0-3, Lesotho 3-0 2-0
Scorers: Miya 3, Okwi 2, Kaddu, Sserunkuma 1 each
Coach: Sebastien Desabre (FRA)
Africa/world rankings: 16/77
Previous appearances: 6
Best placing: runners-up (1978)
Zimbabwe
Qualifying: Liberia 3-0 0-1, Congo Brazzaville 2-0 1-1, Democratic Republic of Congo 1-1 2-1
Scorers: Musona 5, Billiat 3, Pfumbidzai 1
Coach: Sunday Chidzambwa (ZIM)
Africa/world rankings: 28/113
Previous appearances: 3
Best placing: first round
AFP
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