Aliou Cissé Declares Senegal Ready For AFCON Semi-Final

Coach Aliou Cissé has declared Senegal ready for Wednesday’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) semi final against Burkina Faso  in Yaounde.

Senegal earned their place in the semifinals with a 3-1 win over Equatorial Guinea on Sunday night. The Teranga Lions triumphed over Nzalang Nacional thanks to goals from Famara Diedhiou, Cheikhou Kouyate and the returning Ismaila Sarr.

“We prepared well for our semi-final against Burkina Faso, even if we didn’t have a lot of time. We focused on recovery. We know Burkina Faso team well; they remain a good team that is progressing with good players,” head coach Cisse said.

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“ We are expecting a difficult match, but we are ready. I am thinking of doing everything to pass this milestone of the semi-finals.[/perfectpullquote]

Senegal started the Afcon slowly but steadily – topping their group ahead of Guinea, Malawi and Zimbabwe before beating Cape Verde 2-0 in the round of 16.

“We hope and work to win this African title. We have never doubted our abilities. Our desire is to play the grand final on February 6^th,” he added.

This will be the third Africa Cup of Nations encounter between Burkina Faso and Senegal and the first in the knock-out rounds, with Senegal unbeaten in the previous two matches in the group stages.

Senegal finished as runner-up in the last edition held in 2019 in Egypt after losing 1-0 against Algeria in the final.