The Africa Cup of Nations final is upon us, and after weeks of waiting, we’re finally going to get the answer to a very important question: who are the worthy Champions of Africa? The two finalists, Senegal and Algeria, have both scratched and clawed their way through to this point, and it’s safe to say that they’ve proven themselves to be the two best teams on the continent this year. Now, though, there is only room for one as we get ready for the final big international showdown before the domestic European seasons get underway in a few weeks time.

Senegal kicked off their group stage run with a 2-0 win over Tanzania, but they were brought crashing back down to Earth against the very team they’ll play in the final: Algeria, who beat them 1-0. They bounced back with a 3-0 win against Kenya that took them through to the next round, where they edged their way past Uganda 1-0. The same result came in the quarter-finals as they defeated Benin, before a nice 1-0 win over Tunisia in the semis. Salif Sane is expected to come into the starting XI, with Koulibaly’s suspension ruling him out. Niang is tipped to start up top, with Sarr being expected to feature too.

Algeria have remained pretty strong throughout the course of the tournament, kicking off with a 2-0 win over Kenya. They went on to beat Senegal 1-0, which should give them a nice psychological edge heading into the final. They then beat Tanzania 3-0, and in the Round of 16, they were able to repeat that scoreline against Guinea. They were fortunate to edge past Ivory Coast on penalties in the quarter-finals, and then in the semis, a late Mahrez strike gave them the win against Nigeria. The expectation is that they will keep the same starting XI that won the game against Nigeria.

Senegal vs Algeria Betting Prediction

We’re not so sure that this is going to be the kind of goalfest that a lot of fans desire, but even with that being the case, we’re expecting a fun tactical battle between two of Africa’s finest. Senegal are going to give it everything they’ve got with this being their chance to win the title for the first time, but in the end, we believe Algeria are going to be the ones to edge into the lead and stay there. We’re predicting a narrow 1-0 win for them, as they celebrate their 2nd AFCON title.

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