The Leone Stars have never beaten Les Elephants in nine attempts. Sierra Leone will host defending champions Ivory Coast in the fourth round of the AFCON qualifiers at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Stadium on Tuesday evening.
They aim to bounce back to winning ways after only securing one point from their first three matches, which currently places them at the bottom of the table. The three-time Cup of Nations representatives must demonstrate their hunger and resilience as they confront the African Champions for the second time in five days in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The second leg of the doubleheader is scheduled for October 15 at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Stadium in Monrovia, Liberia at 16-hour GMT. Following their 4-1 defeat against Côte d’Ivoire at the Stade de San Pédro, the Leone Stars are focused on revitalizing their chances on Tuesday.
Sierra Leone’s Coach Amidu Karim may consider making several changes to the team that suffered a heavy defeat in Ivory Coast against the African Champions. In his pre-match conference, he noted that both matches are not the same. My team captain and I have observed that Tuesday’s match will be different. We are aiming to get a positive result on our side. We have analysed our mistakes and are not ready to repeat those mistakes on Tuesday.”
Skipper Steven Caulker also mentioned that they are aware of the current standings and that the Leone Stars must achieve a positive result.
Emerse Faé, the coach of Cote d’Ivoire, is fully aware of the task ahead. “The main goal will be to win again. I already mentioned before the first game that it was going to be tough because it’s a good team. This team has made the best impression on me in our group. It was confirmed in the first match, even though we won 4-1.
This is a team that has caused us some problems, so we are expecting a tough game tomorrow. The synthetic playing surface suits them better than us because they are more used to it. We play on this type of surface less often.”
A third consecutive loss for Sierra Leone in the group will certainly make it difficult to qualify for the tournament in Morocco next year. Côte d’Ivoire is determined to uphold its perfect record as it gears up for another strong match against its West African opponents. With nine points from three games, the Elephants are well on their way to securing an early qualification. But even with a defeat against Ivory, Leone Stars can still qualify with wins against difficult Chad and Zambia in their final matches depending on Zambia draw with Chad and lost to Ivory Coast.
Coach Avram Grant’s team faces a tough challenge against Chad at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé, Cameroon. Chad is still looking for their first win, while Zambia, currently in second place with 4 points, is eager to secure a win to stay in contention.
Ivory Coast has enjoyed a perfect start in the AFCON 2025 qualifiers, securing victories against Zambia, Chad, and Sierra Leone, and claiming the top position in Group G with nine points. Zambia has four points, Chad has two, and Sierra Leone has one point.
