Wilfried Zaha gave the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire a 1-0 win over Mali in their 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) round of 16 match on Monday in Suez.
Mali dominated most of the game however and missed a flurry of chances.
Zaha, who had barely featured in the match until that point, took advantage as Mali got into a terrible mess from a Cote d’Ivoire goal kick in the 76th minute.
That was enough to earn his side a barely deserved win and quarter-final tie against Algeria.
Mali, unbeaten in the group stage, had played with verve and skill as they took their southern neighbours apart in the first half.
Moussa Djenepo and Abdoulaye Diaby caused all sorts of trouble down the flanks and Moussa Marega was a constant threat in attack.
But, as they began to tire after around an hour, Cote d’Ivoire came back into the game.
Jonathan Kodjia missed gilt-edged chance when he was one-on-one with goalkeeper Djigui Diarra, but Zaha was not so forgiving minutes later.(Reuters/NAN)
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