The current host of the African Cup of Nations 2023 aimed to secure the top spot in Group A in their stadium and in their own country, while Equatorial Guinea sought to achieve the feat of taking the lead in Group A to qualify for the knockout stage.

AFCON 2023: Cote d’Ivoire Gearing Up for Must-Win Clash Against High-Flying Equatorial Guinea

However, things did not go well for the hosts as they suffered a painful defeat against the surprising Equatorial Guinea team, who defeated the Ivorians 4-0 at the Stade Olympique d'Ebimp. During the match, which seemed
more balanced towards the home team, there were no goals until the late stages of the first half when Emilio Nsue opened the scoring in the 64’ minute to give the lead to Juan Micha's team.

Later, Pablo Ganet would appear to increase the advantage and make things even more difficult for the hosts, who were already trailing 2-0 in the 73’ minute of the second half. 

Two minutes later, in the 75’ minute, the goal scorer Emilio Nsue would reappear, putting the third of the afternoon for Equatorial Guinea and the second in his personal account, leaving the match with a seemingly definitive score of 3-0.

Ivory Coast Take the Win Against Guinea-Bissau in the Kickoff Of the Africa Cup of Nations

However, Equatorial Guinea continued pressing, and in the 88’ minute, they scored the 4-0 thanks to a great goal from Jannick Buyala to close the curtain and end the match with a scandalous victory over the host team, Ivory Coast.