The 26th African Cup of Nations 2008
http://www.ghanacan2008.com/fixtures.php
Host: Ghana
Tournament runs from January 20 to February 10, 2008

Group A: Ghana, Nambia, Guinea, Moracco
Group B: Nigeria, Benin, Mali, Ivory Coast
Group C: Egypt, Sudan, Zambia, Cameroon
Group D: Tunisia, Angola, South Africa, Senegal

Quaterfinals: Feb 3/4
Semifinals: Feb 7
Third Place: Feb 9
Finals: Feb 10

Winner of African Cup of Nations qualifies for the FIFA Confederations Cup South Africa 2009
(there are 8 total qualifiers: 6 regional winners, 1 host, 1 World Cup winner)
Current Qualifiers
Iraq (Asia)
USA (North America)
Brazil (South America)
South Africa (Host)
Italy (World Cup winner)
TBD (Africa)
TBD (Europe)
TBD (Oceania)

[Edited on January 21, 2008 at 9:09 PM. Reason : ]

1/21/2008 9:04:27 PM

ok

1/21/2008 9:16:48 PM

GO COTE' DE VOIR!


they would have made some noise in the world cup if they didnt get the group of fucking death

1/21/2008 9:17:44 PM

Cameroon better sweep this shit.

1/21/2008 9:18:19 PM

it's côte d'ivoire

cote de voir = quotation from to see

[Edited on January 21, 2008 at 9:21 PM. Reason : ]

1/21/2008 9:19:42 PM

Ivory Coast beat Nigeria today

1/21/2008 9:22:19 PM

^^whoops I googled and picked the first thing I saw and I didnt want to type out all those accents

thx


^sweet...I def think they will win

[Edited on January 21, 2008 at 9:28 PM. Reason : ^]

1/21/2008 9:28:27 PM

kalou's goal made SC

1/21/2008 9:30:05 PM

GO BACK TO THE GHETTO

1/21/2008 9:32:34 PM

i know roughly zilch about african football

but the ghana team was fun to watch in the world cup

go ghana?

1/21/2008 9:32:38 PM

THE BLACK STARS

1/21/2008 9:34:14 PM

Current Results:
Group A
Ghana v Guinea
Nambia v Morocco

Group B
Nigeria v Ivory Coast
Mali v Benin

1/21/2008 9:39:59 PM

I posted about this in the EPL thread, didn't think it would get enough posts to need its own thread but

Quote :

"i know roughly zilch about african football"

For Nigeria and Ivory Coast at least, if you know anything about English club football, you'd know them... almost both entire starting lineups play in England

1/21/2008 11:01:47 PM

Tomorrow's matches:
Egypt v Cameroon
Sudan v Zambia

In case anyone is curious about overall rankings for the teams, here it is:
*Note that USA is currently #20 internationally, if you care to compare*
Regional/International Ranks
1/19 Nigeria
2/25 Cameroon
3/33 Guinea
4/35 Egypt
5/38 Ivory Coast
6/39 Moracco
7/40 Senegal
8/43 Ghana
9/46 Tunisia
10/47 Mali
11/67 Zambia
13/72 Angola
17/78 South Africa
23/94 Sudan
24/94 Benin
34/119 Nambia

[Edited on January 22, 2008 at 12:02 AM. Reason : Watch out for Egypt... they have been surging up the ranks]

1/21/2008 11:59:51 PM

wow I really would have though the Ivory Coast would be higher up in both rankings. Especially the African rankings

1/22/2008 12:03:50 AM

^ me too. I figured top 3 at least
When i looked at the FIFA ranking for their region, the Ivory Coast has been on a slide. I have no idea why.

1/22/2008 12:07:48 AM

togo

1/22/2008 1:34:01 AM

Quote :

"For Nigeria and Ivory Coast at least, if you know anything about English club football, you'd know them... almost both entire starting lineups play in England"

yeah, i'm familiar with a bunch of the players, just not the competition as a whole

looking over the rosters... sudan's entire squad is made of players from two sudanese clubs

côte d'ivoire is pretty well stacked -- aside from the EPL players, koné was the man in PES9

1/22/2008 1:59:10 AM

cameroon FTW

assuming that eto'o is playing

he's one of my favorite players to watch

1/22/2008 2:02:39 AM

^ eto'o had 2 goals today but cameroon got trashed by egypt

1/22/2008 3:01:37 PM

anyone know where to see some highlights on these games. i heard muntari(i think) had a screamer of a goal

1/22/2008 9:38:00 PM

Zambia (3:0) Sudan
Egypt (4:2) Cameroon
Tunisia (2:2) Senegal
South Africa (1:1) Angola

I said... watch out for Egypt

Updated Standings
Group A: Ghana 3, Moracco 3, Nambia 0, Guinea 0
Group B: Mali 3, Ivory Coast 3, Nigeria 0, Benin 0
Group C: Egypt 3, Zambia 3, Sudan 0, Cameroon 0
Group D: Tunisia 1, Angola 1, South Africa 1, Senegal 1

[Edited on January 24, 2008 at 12:31 AM. Reason : ]

1/24/2008 12:20:06 AM

man utd's new signee(if permit goes through), Manucho, scored Angola's goal

1/24/2008 1:01:01 AM

Quote :

"anyone know where to see some highlights on these games. i heard muntari(i think) had a screamer of a goal"

I think they've had most of them in this section on BigSoccer and if not, they usually have play by play game threads in the Africa section

http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=1112

1/24/2008 9:06:29 AM

no one in the crowd for that tunisis senegal matchup

1/24/2008 9:31:32 AM

Quote :

"man utd's new signee(if permit goes through), Manucho, scored Angola's goal"

I still don't understand why these kids wanna sign with a big name club knowing full and damn well they'll probably end up on the reserve team or riding the bench. Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather go to a midtable club and get some first team minutes.

1/24/2008 9:48:35 AM

Quote :

"I still don't understand why these kids wanna sign with a big name club knowing full and damn well they'll probably end up on the reserve team or riding the bench. Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather go to a midtable club and get some first team minutes."

I agree entirely. But for some reason soccer fans think soccer stars actually pay attention to benchwarmers and help them out a bit on their skills, which I just find ludicrous.

1/24/2008 9:57:24 AM

Quote :

"I agree entirely. But for some reason soccer fans think soccer stars actually pay attention to benchwarmers and help them out a bit on their skills, which I just find ludicrous. "

This happens in every sport, not just soccer. Recently drafted QB's, point guards, starting pitchers, etc. all supposedly learn the game by studying the in-place veterans at their respective positions.

I don't see what's hard to believe about veterans helping younger players by -- giving helpful tips on what kind of play to expect (strategic, physical nature of leagues, etc), how higher level games in certain countries are handled differently by officials, and how to respond to media/coach pressure at high visibility clubs. Disregarding all of that, you don't think by training with and having the opportunity to play with the best in the world has any affect on a player's ability?

I understand wanting to get first team minutes and I'm not saying I would choose to do what some of these younger players do but -- the best clubs in the world (usually) have the best coaches in the world, medical staff, day-to-day training staff, highest salaries, largest media exposure, opportunities to play in places you couldn't play at smaller clubs (Champions League for example).

1/24/2008 4:08:15 PM

It's not the same as other sports, though. The best way to learn is to play -- that's why development leagues like Minor League Baseball and the NBDL exist. Why warm the bench in Manchester when you could be on the pitch for the majority of the other clubs in the EPL? Playing somewhere else he'd get more experience and he'd still be bought by Manchester in two or three years if and when he's ready for the big show.

1/24/2008 8:46:45 PM

you know they have a reserves league in the EPL, right?

1/24/2008 8:48:35 PM

Yes, and reserve squad pay is shit compared to what he'd make as a first team player at a bottom half team like Reading or Middlesbrough. Maybe the comparison to U.S. leagues was a poor choice.

[Edited on January 24, 2008 at 8:52 PM. Reason : ]

1/24/2008 8:52:26 PM

A lot of these will get loaned out to the smaller clubs anyway while they are with the big ones.

1/24/2008 9:04:05 PM

Yeah, if I were in the position... I would probably play at a mid-tier team and get minutes instead of going to somewhere like Manchester United.

I was just pointing out the many, many benefits there are for playing for a team like ManYoo

1/24/2008 9:05:43 PM

Today's results:
Ghana (1:0) Nambia
Guinea (3:2) Moracco

Group A Standings:
Ghana 6pts
Guinea 3 pts
Moracco 3 pts
Nambia 0 pts

I understand Ghana is the host nation, but they are only the 3rd best team in the group. very impressive

[Edited on January 24, 2008 at 9:14 PM. Reason : ]

1/24/2008 9:12:59 PM

^? Ghana is/was good before this tournament. I would consider them favorites to win the whole tournament

1/24/2008 9:43:36 PM

I know they are good, but according to FIFA rankings, they are only the 3rd best in group A. I know you shouldnt read too much into rankings, especially if they are the host nation. It's just interesting that they beat Guinea (highst ranked team in group), and stayed consistant by picking up another W today.

Tomorrow's matches:
Ivory Coast v Benin
Nigeria v Mali

Both Ivory Coast and Nigeria should win easily.

[Edited on January 24, 2008 at 9:53 PM. Reason : ]

1/24/2008 9:49:36 PM

how in the world is guinea ranked better than ghana? where are you looking at these rankings?

im looking at their past results, and theyve lost to the cape verde islands in 06...when they were at their best ranking.

fifa rankings are more retarded than preseason polls here in the US

[Edited on January 24, 2008 at 9:57 PM. Reason : s]

1/24/2008 9:52:40 PM

http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/ranking/lastranking/gender=m/fullranking.html#confederation=23913&rank=165

Guinea is 3rd best team in Africa, behind Nigeria and Cameroon (though they both lost in their 1st games )

1/24/2008 9:57:00 PM

i cant even name one player on guineas team...


cape verde islands are ranked 110. you dont lose to 110 ranked team when you are ranked in the 20s.

1/24/2008 9:59:23 PM

Quote :

"I don't see what's hard to believe about veterans helping younger players by -- giving helpful tips on what kind of play to expect (strategic, physical nature of leagues, etc), how higher level games in certain countries are handled differently by officials, and how to respond to media/coach pressure at high visibility clubs. Disregarding all of that, you don't think by training with and having the opportunity to play with the best in the world has any affect on a player's ability?"

No.

I think having the opportunity to play against the best in the world in a game that's actually worth two cents has a bigger effect on a player's ability.

Case in point for American football, have Matt Cassel or Jim Sorgi learned anything from Tom Brady or Peyton Manning after backing them up for 2-3 years? From their relief appearances I saw this year, the answer is a very clear and definitive no.

[Edited on January 24, 2008 at 11:14 PM. Reason : /]

1/24/2008 11:13:56 PM

if you are 18 years old and man u is offering you a contract, you are taking it...it's not like these players have confidence problems, i'm sure they go there expecting to contribute

1/24/2008 11:29:48 PM

Maybe I should've started a new paragraph with "disregarding all that..." but I wasn't referring to the same position veterans in the question I asked. I was referring to younger forwards playing against defenders like Ferdinand and Vidic and younger midfielders playing against Hargreaves, Scholes, Ronaldo, etc. and younger defenders playing against Tevez and Rooney in small sided games and scrimmages.

They aren't experiences that amount to any kind of win-loss record but to say they are worthless doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

As for your example, I think Cassel and Sorgi suck anyways.

1/24/2008 11:36:19 PM

I'd say AIDS beats them all

1/24/2008 11:38:46 PM

haha

1/24/2008 11:46:22 PM

FIFA rankings are garbage.

1/25/2008 3:53:38 AM

Today's Results
Ivory Coast (4:1) Benin
Nigeria (0:0) Mali

Group B Updated Standings:
Ivory Coast 6pts
Mali 4pts
Nigeria 1pts
Benin 0pts

Tomorrow's Matches:
Cameroon v Zambia
Egypt v Sudan

(I'm guessing both Cameroon and Egypt score big wins)

1/25/2008 8:45:27 PM

Today's Results:
Cameroon (5:1) Zambia
Egypt (3:0) Sudan

Group C Updated Standings:
Egypt 6pts
Cameroon 3pts
Zambia 3pts
Sudan 0pts

Tomorrow's Matches:
Tunisia v South Africa
Angola v Senegal

1/26/2008 6:46:04 PM

Today's Results:
Angola (3:1) Senegal
Tunisia (3:1) South Africa

Group D Updated Standings:
Angola 4
Tunisia 4
Senegal 1
South Africa 1

Tomorrow's Matches (final group matches):
Ghana v Moracco
Guinea v Nambia

Group A Current Standings:
Ghana 6pts
Guinea 3 pts
Moracco 3 pts
Nambia 0 pts

[Edited on January 27, 2008 at 6:34 PM. Reason : ]

1/27/2008 6:25:47 PM

Today's Results:
Ghana (2:0) Moracco
Guinea (1:1) Nambia

Group A Final Standings:
Ghana 9pts
Guinea 4pts
Moracco 3pts
Nambia 1pt

Tomorrow's Matches (final group B matches):
Ivory Coast v Mali
Nigeria v Benin

Current Group B Standings:
Ivory Coast 6pts
Mali 4pts
Nigeria 1pts
Benin 0pts

1/28/2008 8:32:17 PM

Because I don't want to look it up, do they only play one leg in the group stage?

1/28/2008 8:37:22 PM