Tournament hosts Ivory Coast have qualified for the knockout of 2023 AFCON following a dramatic final round of group matches in Group E and Group F, MySportDab reports.
The Elephants finished third in Group A behind Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea after they won one one match, losing two.
With Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea qualifying from Group A, the Ivoriens hoped to make the four best third-placed teams that will join the 12 other teams in the knockout.
Meanwhile, Ghana, who finished third in their group with just 2 points were out of the tournament, giving Ivoriens hope of making it to the next round.
Mauritania, who finished third on their group also booked a place in the next round of the tournament, including Guinea in Group B.
The last remaining slot was between the hosts and Zambia, who had 2 points heading into final group Group F clash against Morocco.
Zambia needed just a draw against Morocco to book a place in the next round of the tournament as they had a superior goal difference than the Ivoriens but it ended in a nightmare as they stumbled to a narrow 1-0 defeat to the 2022 World Cup semifinalists.
The loss saw Cote D’Ivoire clinched the last knockout slot for third-placed teams in the group stage.
2023 AFCON Round 16 Fixtures
Nigeria will open the 2023 AFCON round 16 clash with Cameroon on Saturday, January 27 while Angola take on Namibia.
Equatorial Guinea take on Guinea while Egypt tackle DR Congo on Sunday, January 28.
Ivory Coast have been handed a tough fixture against defending champions Senegal while Cape Verde clash with Mauritania on Monday, January 29.
On Tuesday, January 30, Morocco will take on South Africa while Mali play Burkina Faso
Full Draws
Saturday, January 27
Angola v Namibia
Nigeria v Cameroon
Sunday, January 28
Equatorial Guinea v Guinea
Egypt v Democratic Republic of Congo
Monday, January 29
Cape Verde v Mauritania
Senegal v Ivory Coast
Tuesday, January 30
Mali v Burkina Faso
Morocco v South Africa
