The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations group stage was full of drama, with upsets after upsets and last-gasp goals. Hosts Ivory Coast came closest to leaving the tournament, while pre tournament underdogs topped their groups. Little-known players stole the show, stars failed to deliver. Manager changes also added to the intrigue, even without teams being eliminated.

The knockout stages kicked off on Saturday, and yes, there were more thrills. We take a look back on the exhilarating first 11 days that set the stage for crowning the next continental champions.

Heavyweights Falter, Underdogs Deliver

Nigeria’s early comeback against Equatorial Guinea gave us an idea of what lay ahead. 

Seven-time Africa champions, Egypt, and one of the tournament favourites, needed a last-minute penalty from Mohamed Salah to secure a 2-2 draw against minnows Mozambique.

Former champions Ghana, Algeria, and Tunisia all could not make it to the last 16, with Equatorial Guinea, Cape Verde, and Angola topping their groups.

Ivory Coast, enjoying playing at home, suffered a shocking 4-0 defeat by Equatorial Guinea in their final Group A match, and one of the top picks for AFCON 2023 matches.

Namibia stunned 2004 champions Tunisia 1-0 victory, their first-ever finals win in their tenth time of asking. 

Mauritania’s surprise win over Algeria and an intense match between The Gambia and Cameroon made other memorable moments.

Defending champions Senegal were the only side to breeze through the group stages with a perfect record.

Show of Late Goals

The finals have seen a remarkable 12 goals scored in second-half injury time, a considerable increase from the four in the 2021 edition. 

Garry Rodrigues secured Cape Verde a 92nd-minute winner against Ghana, which set the pace for the Black Stars elimination.

Ghana appeared set to advance from Group B before allowing late goals in the 91st and 94th minutes against Mozambique.

Egypt’s final group match saw them lead Cape Verde, thanks to a 93rd minute goal, only to concede in the 99th minute, advancing ahead of Ghana with three 2-2 draws. 

Burkina Faso advanced courtesy of Bertrand Traore’s 96th-minute penalty against Mauritania, but Algeria’s Baghdad Bounedjah’s 95th-minute header against Burkinabes in another group match was not enough.

Namibia beat Tunisia with Deon Hotto’s winner two minutes from time. Cameroon staged a late comeback against The Gambia, with Christopher Wooh scoring the winner a minute into added time for the Indomitable Lions who had benefitted from James Gomez’s 87th-minute own goal.

Managers Pay the Price

When giants fall, it usually leads to managers being dropped.  

Ghana sacked Chris Hughton after their elimination, the first of several sackings.

Tom Saintfiet resigned as The Gambia’s manager shortly after their exit, after failing to replicate their previous quarter-final success.

Algeria and Tunisia saw Djamel Belmadi and Jalel Kadri leave, respectively, while Ivory Coast also took action after finishing third in their group. Jean-Louis Gasset was dismissed following Ivory Coast’s humiliating loss to Equatorial Guinea, despite the team still qualifying for the next round.

Meanwhile, the Confederation of African Football effected mid-tournament bans on Tanzania’s Adel Amrouche and Morocco’s Walid Regragui.