Sport | Football
Equatorial Guinea hope to upset mighty Ivory Coast
Co-hosts have done well by reaching quarters
- Reuters
- Published: 00:00 February 4, 2012
Malabo: Equatorial Guinea's lower-league footballers and little-known journeymen will try and upset a side containing household names such as Didier Drogba and Yaya Toure at the Africa Cup of Nations on Saturday.
The co-hosts's unlikely collection of players, some born and raised in Spain with parents from the African country and others also foreign-born but naturalised, have already surpassed their wildest expectations by reaching the quarter-finals. Today they attempt to produce an even bigger shock by eliminating the powerful Ivory Coast who won all three of their group games without conceding a goal.
Underdogs
"I've never viewed us as underdogs," Equatorial Guinea's Brazilian coach Gilson Paulo told Reuters. "Perhaps people in the media see us as underdogs but we aim to go as far as possible."
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