Cameroon and Burkina Faso will look to end their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations campaigns on a high when they meet in the third-place playoff at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé on Saturday 5 February, kick-off at 19:00 GMT.
Cameroon’s hopes of a sixth Africa of Nations Cup title were dashed on Thursday night when they were succumbed to a penalty shootout defeat at the hands of Egypt.
It’s a huge missed opportunity for coach Antonio Canceicao and his men, who looked to have the talent to go all the way and claim the trophy, especially in the wake of their impressive win over Gambia in the quarterfinals.
Led by their influential captain, Vincent Aboubakar, the Al Nasr man has been lethal in front for the Indomitable Lions and has expressed disappointment after their loss against Carlos Queiroz’s men.
“It’s true that disappointment is great, but that’s life. We have to regroup to win this third place this Saturday against Burkina Faso,” he said.
“We have to try to forget elimination in the semifinals and think about the future, especially this classification match and the World Cup qualifiers. We have confidence in ourselves, and we must recover quickly.”
On the other hand, Burkina Faso are set to go all out and fight to erase their 3-1 disappointing defeat against Senegal in the semis by at least finishing as number three.
The Stallions have had an up-and-down ride through this AFCON, but finishing in the top four is their best Nations Cup performance since winning finishing second in 2013.
Burkina Faso head coach Kamou Malo is likely to shuffle their packs and give playing time to the fringe members of the squad.
The Stallions coach was disappointed by the loss to Teranga Lions, but hopes they will recover to put in a strong performance in this clash for the bronze medals.
“It is true that we are disappointed following our elimination in the semifinals, but we have to prepare ourselves properly to play this match for third place in the best conditions,” said Malo.
“ We have to remobilize now. We are physically and mentally ready for play our game.”
In head-to-head terms, Cameroon and Burkina Faso have met in seven 10 matches, according to FIFA’s statistics database. The Indomitable Lions have claimed five wins compared to just one for the Stallions, while four games have been drawn.
The teams met earlier in this Africa Cup of Nations, with their Group A game in Doula on January 9 ending in a 2- 1win for Cameroon thanks to a brace of penalties from Vincent Aboubakar.
