Mali and Burkina Faso will battle it out for a place in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2024). Which of these outfits will reign supreme after 90 minutes?
Mali vs Burkina Faso overview
This Round of 16 game will be played on Tuesday January 30 at the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium in Korhogo. Kick-off time is 6 pm WAT.
Mali
Mali secured a place in the knockout stages of this competition after leading the Group E standings. Although they accumulated just five points from a possible nine, it was enough to take the top spot.
Eric Chelle's men will set their sights on a place in the quarter-finals as they clash with Burkina Faso on Tuesday.
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso suffered a 2-0 loss to Angola in their final group game, although they had already qualified for the Round of 16 at the time.
Hubert Velud's troops were second in Group D, with four points from three group matches. It'll be interesting to see how they'll match-up against this Mali side.
Mali vs Burkina Faso head to head
It's important to note that Mali and Burkina Faso are neighbours, so they've met a fair few times over the years.
As a matter of fact, this will be the 30th encounter between these sides, and 25 of their previous 29 skirmishes were in friendly matches.
The only other time these teams met at the AFCON was in 2004, where Burkina Faso suffered a 3-1 loss.
As it stands, Mali have 14 wins against their opponents. Four of 29 clashes between these sides ended in stalemates, while Burkina Faso came out on top on 11 occasions.
These teams last met at the African Nations Championships (CHAN) in January 2021.
Mali vs Burkina Faso potential lineups
Mali are expected to line up in a 4-3-1-2 formation with Djigui Diarra starting in goal. The Young Africans shot-stopper kept two clean sheets in the group stages, conceding just once.
Hubert Velud will likely adopt a 4-2-3-1 formation for Burkina Faso, with Dango Ouattara being the lone forward. The Bournemouth player is still eyeing his first goal at this tournament.
On that note, these are our probable Mali vs Burkina Faso lineups:
Mali
Goalkeeper: Djigui Diarra.
Defenders: Moussa Diarra, Sikou Niakhaté, Boubakar
Kouyate, Hamari Traore.
Midfielders: Nene Dorgeles, Yves Bissouma, Aliou
Dieng, Fousseni Diabate.
Forwards: Lassine Sinayoko, Youssouf Niakate.
Burkina Faso
Goalkeeper: Hervé Koffi.
Defenders: Abdoul Guiebre, Edmond Tapsoba,
Issoufou Dayo, Issa Kaboré.
Midfielders: Ismahila Ouedraogo, Gustavo Sangaré,
Aziz Ki, Bertrand Traore, Cedric Badolo.
Forwards: Dango Ouattara.
Mali vs Burkina Faso tactical analysis
Mali have proven to be a tough nut to crack. They are currently on a 10-match unbeaten run across all competitions, with seven wins and three draws.
As we've previously mentioned, Chelle's troops have been solid defensively, allowing just one goal in three group games.
In contrast, Burkina Faso are coming off a loss, and have no wins in their last two games. Velud's men saw their defence breached four times in that two-game stretch, and have just one clean sheet in their last five matches.
Mali vs Burkina Faso prediction
Taking both teams' recent form into account, it's no surprise that Mali are the favourites to win this match.
Not only have the Malians fared better than their opponents, they've also dominated Burkina Faso in recent years.
In fact, Mali have eight wins in the last 10 skirmishes between these outfits. They lost just once in that stretch, with one draw.
On that note, we are fairly confident that Eric Chelle's men will emerge victorious at the end of this game.
Where to watch Mali vs Burkina Faso live
ORTM and Canal+ will broadcast this match on TV for fans who reside in Mali. Meanwhile those who stay in Burkina Faso can catch all the action live on RTB.
