"For a decade or more, a familiar theme of Cups of Nations has been how the pyramid of African football has been growing little taller but much broader. African sides came no closer to really challenging at a World Cup, but the range of teams capable of beating the continent's elite, of getting to the knockout stage of the Cup of Nations, was becoming more diverse."
"Perhaps, though, a new phase is beginning. It's dangerous always to read too much into the performance of one side at one tournament, but in Qatar in 2022 Morocco at last broke through the quarter-final barrier and became the first African side to reach a World Cup semi-final. And now, in the Cup of Nations Morocco are hosting, the traditional powers are reasserting themselves."
"This has been a very strange tournament for the 1990 World Cup quarter-finalists. They arrived in apparent chaos, with two rival coaches each naming squads and submitting them to the Confederation of African football. But Samuel Eto'o, the president of the Cameroonian football federation, has, at least temporarily, won his power struggle with the sports ministry and the young side selected by his preferred coach, David Pagou, has impressed with a dynamic and very direct style."
For a decade the pyramid of African football has grown little taller but much broader, expanding the range of teams able to challenge elite sides and reach knockout stages. Morocco's run to the 2022 World Cup semi-final marked a new high for African teams. As hosts of the current Cup of Nations, Morocco saw traditional powers reassert themselves, and the tournament has produced few surprises. South Africa beat Cameroon 2-1 in the round of 16. Cameroon arrived amid coaching rivalries and federation turmoil, yet the young side coached by David Pagou impressed with a dynamic, direct style.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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