After a group stage of the African Cup of Nations considered by many observers as the best in the history of the competition, we were not disappointed by the round of 16.
The twists and turns and surprises were rich.
After the eliminations of Tunisia, Ghana and Algeria during the first round, two big names from the African continent fell by the wayside.
This Tuesday evening, it was Morocco which was surprised by South Africa (2-0), during a match which was marked by the missed penalty by the Parisian Achraf Hakimi and the expulsion in added time by Sofyane Amrabat.
Senegal, defending champion and the only team to have won its 3 group matches, fell foul of the Ivory Coast.
The host country, which had qualified at the last minute for the round of 16 thanks to the success of the Moroccans at the expense of Zambia (1-0), defeated the defending champion on Monday evening at the end of the penalty shootout (5-4).
It was in this same exercise that Egypt, record holder for victories in the CAN (7), lost (7-8) against DR Congo.
Now for the quarter-finals!
Eight teams can still dream of winning this 2024 African Cup of Nations. These four quarter-finals will take place on Friday January 26 and Saturday January 27.
The first meeting will pit Nigeria, three-time winners (1980, 1994, 2013), against Angola.
On Friday evening, two outsiders, DR Congo and Guinea, will face off for a place in the last four.
The next day, Ivory Coast will challenge Mali for the best poster of these quarter-finals.
Finally, the surprising poster will pit South Africa against Cape Verde.
The semi-finals will be played on February 7, the small final for 3rd place will take place on Saturday 10 and the final the next day at the Alassane Ouattara stadium in Abidjan.