Ivory Coast Win Africa Cup of Nations After Goals From Franck Kessie and Sebastien Haller Defeat Nigeria in Final of Remarkable Tournament
Ivory Coast won the Africa Cup of Nations for a third time on Sunday by beating Nigeria 2-1 in the final.
Franck Kessie and Sebastien Haller got the goals for the host nation after Player of the Tournament William Troost-Ekong had given Nigeria a first-half lead.
Seko Fofana and Serge Aurier also featured for Ivory Coast in Sunday's final, while 2023 African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen was on the losing side.
These two teams had met earlier in the tournament when Nigeria won 1-0 during the group phase.
Troost-Ekong scored the only goal of that game and he netted again to put Nigeria in front 38 minutes into Sunday's final.
The former Watford defender headed home powerfully from eight yards after Ademola Lookman's corner kick had been flicked on at the near post.
That goal came against the run of play as Ivory Coast had dominated the contest in terms of possession and chances.
The hosts continued to look like the better side after falling behind and deservedly equalized in the 62nd minute when ex-Barcelona midfielder Kessie nodded in from a Simon Adingra corner.
Brighton winger Adingra also assisted the winning goal, which arrived 19 minutes later when his wicked cross from the left was diverted into the net by a deft touch off Haller's outstretched right boot.
Haller's goal sent fans at Alassane Ouattara Stadium wild, as well as former Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba, who was among the crowd.
Sunday's victory over Nigeria came 18 days after Jean-Louis Gasset had lost his job as Ivory Coast manager.
The Ivory Coast Football Federation (FIF) dismissed Gasset on January 24 after Les Elephants had been beaten in two of their three group games, including a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Equatorial Guinea.
It looked as though the tournament hosts were set for an early exit, but results elsewhere eventually meant that three points were enough to take them through to the round of 16.
The FIF tried but failed to hire Herve Renard to lead the team into the knockout stage, leaving Emerse Fae in the role of interim head coach.
Fae went on to win the AFCON's Best Coach award.
He oversaw a penalty-shootout victory over reigning champions Senegal in the round of 16, followed by a 2-1 win over Mali in the quarter-finals thanks to a 122nd-minute winner by Oumar Diakite.
DR Congo were then beaten 1-0 in the semi-finals before Fae's side got the better of three-time champions Nigeria in Sunday's finale.
Highlights: Nigeria 1-2 Ivory Coast
AFCON 2023 witnessed 119 goals across 52 matches, which were attended by more than one million fans in total.
Emilio Nsue won the Golden Boot after scoring five goals for Equatorial Guinea, who were eliminated in the round of 16.
Five penalty shootouts were needed during the knockout phase, including one in the third place play-off, which saw South Africa overcome DR Congo.