Mali will today take on D.R. Congo in the final of the CHAN 2016 to determine who gets to be crowned champion in Kigali, Rwanda.
Mali, who were not considered favourites to reach the final, will be seeking to cause an upset and lift the trophy at the expense of The Leopards.
Mali qualified as Group D runner-up, only victorious in one of their three games during the opening matches at CHAN 2016.
Draws against Uganda and Zambia flanked a dramatic 1-0 win against Zimbabwe, earning Mali a place in the knockouts and an unbeaten group stage qualification record.
Even though they began the tournament poorly, the Malians produced great displays in their subsequent matches to eliminate some of the best teams in the continent.
They first eliminated Tunisia in the quarter-finals, recording a 2-1 victory in Kigali, before going past a fancied Cote d’Ivoire in the semi-final stage.
D.R. Congo, unlike their opponents, began the tournament ion a high, brushing aside Ethiopia 3-0 before beating Angola 4-2. They however went down to Cameroon, consequently qualifying as the group’s runners-up.
In their subsequent games, The Leopards eliminated the hosts, Rwanda, before lauboring past a resilient Guinea, who they beat on penalties.
Analysts predict a cautious game between the two, with a possibility of the result being influenced by capitalizations of the opponent’s mistakes by any of the two.
