Somalia vs Ivory Coast AFCON Qualifier Preview
Ivory Coast are aiming to build on their opening win when they travel to Somalia for their second Group C fixture in the AFCON qualifiers.
The Elephants have been solid lately and should be too strong for the hosts, who often struggle at this level.
Key Stats
- Ivory Coast have won seven of their last nine matches in all competitions.
- Somalia are winless in six of their last 10 matches in all competitions.
- Somalia have lost seven of their last eight home matches.
- Somalia have lost by three or more goals in three of their last five matches in all competitions.
No Previous Meetings
This will be the first ever meeting between Somalia and Ivory Coast at this level.
Somalia Struggling at this Level
Somalia began their qualifying campaign with a 2-1 away defeat to Gambia. They looked to be heading for a draw after Bilal Njie cancelled out an early opener from the hosts but went on to concede the winner.
Recent results have been quite disappointing for Somalia, who often struggle at this level. Yusuf Ali Nur’s team have failed to win six of their last 10 matches in all competitions.
Somalia’s struggles seem to be more pronounced on home soil, having lost seven of their last eight matches in front of their fans. There have been some one-sided defeats in this run, including back-to-back 3-0 losses to Algeria and Guinea during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Elephants Flying High
Ivory Coast were victorious in their opening fixture, easing to a comfortable 2-0 win over Ghana. Malick Yacoulye opened the scoring just before the break while Frank Kessie scored from the penalty spot in the second half.
Manager Hervé Renard will be pleased with his team's performance as they now have early control of the group. The result also maintains a solid run for Ivory Coast, who have won seven of their last nine matches in all competitions.
Ivory Coast are playing with confidence at the moment and have claimed some one-sided results lately. The Elephants earned a 4-0 victory over South Korea in a friendly in June, while a 7-0 away victory over Seychelles in the World Cup qualifiers is also among their results.
Team News & Predicted Line-ups
Somalia (3-4-3): Ibrahim Hussein; Abel Gigli, Ali Omar, Faisal Othman; Abdulle Abdullahi, Abdulsamed Abdulliahi, Abdulrahman Sharif, Mohamed Mohamed; Marsis, Sakariya Hassan, Bilal Njie.
Abdi Sabriye went off injured in the first half against Gambia and is likely to miss Tuesday's clash. Marsis should start in his place while Njie is expected to lead the line for Somalia following his goal last time out.
Ivory Coast (4-2-3-1): Yahia Fofana; Luc Zogbe, Ousmane Diomande, Evan Ndicka, Ghislain Konan; Ibrahim Sangare, Franck Kessie; Nicolas Pepe, Malick Yalcouye, Yan Diomande, Ange-Yoan Bonny.
Ivory Coast have no injuries or suspensions from their opening fixture and may stick with much of the team that beat Ghana. Yacoulye and Kessie should retain their places in the team following their goals last time out, while Ousmane Diomande and Evan Ndicka should continue at the back.