Fresh off the back of a gruesome semi-final defeat at the hands of Egypt, Africa Cup of Nations hosts Cameroon lock horns with Burkina Faso at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in the third-place playoff on Saturday.

The Stallions, on the other hand, fell to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Senegal in Wednesday's last-four clash and will head into this game desperate to get one over Cameroon having failed to taste victory in any of the last five meetings between the sides.

Match preview

© Reuters

After a sloppy start to the Africa Cup of Nations, Burkina Faso will feel satisfied with their performance at the tournament as they could walk away with the bronze medal on Saturday.
​
Kamou Malo's side were denied a dream start to the tournament in their opening game on January 9, when they fell to a 2-1 defeat at the hands Cameroon when Vincent Aboubakar struck twice to cancel out Gustavo Sangare's 24th-minute opener and hand the host nation all three points.
​
However, Burkina Faso bounced back to winning ways four days later when they edged out Cape Verde 1-0 in a nervy contest before wrapping things up in the group stages with a 1-1 draw with Ethiopia on January 17.
​
With four points from three games, the Stallions finished as runners-up in Group A, three points off group winners Cameroon and level on points with Cape Verde, who also progressed as one of the four best third-placed sides.
​
Heading into the knockout stages as one of the underdogs, the West Africans were then held to a 1-1 draw by a resilient Gabon side in their round-of-16 clash before going on to win the game 7-6 on penalties.

© Reuters
​
Burkina Faso continued their fairytale run at the tournament as they claimed a surprise 1-0 victory over Tunisia in the quarter-finals last Saturday courtesy of Dango Ouattara's solitary strike on the stroke of half time.
​
However, Malo's side were denied a second final appearance since 2013, when they were beaten 1-0 by Nigeria, as they fell to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Senegal in in their semi-final four days later.
​
Following a drab first-half, the game was sparked to life after the interval as Abdou Diallo and Ahmadou Bamba Dieng scored in a six-minute spell to put the Senegalese two goals up, and after Ibrahim Blati Toure pulled one back in the 82nd minute, Sadio Mane scored his third goal of the tournament to restore the Lions of Teranga's two-goal advantage.
​
Burkina Faso head into Wednesday's game unbeaten in 10 of their last 12 games across all competitions, scoring 18 goals and keeping five clean sheets in that time.
​
On the other hand, for all the promise shown throughout the course of the tournament, Cameroon will feel somewhat disappointed all the same as they will now have to settle for a third-placed finish at best.

© Reuters
​
Following a fine run in the qualifiers, where they finished top of Group F after claiming 11 points from six games, the Indomitable Lions secured smooth passage to the Africa Cup of Nations proper.
​
Riding on the wave of support from the home crowd, the Central Africans got the tournament underway in style when they came from behind to claim a 2-1 win over Saturday's opponents when they met in Group A on January 9.
​
Toni Conceicao's men turned in another fine show of class four days later when they came from behind to secure a comprehensive 4-1 win over Ethiopia, before holding out for a 1-1 draw in their group finale against Cape Verde on January 17.
​
Finishing top of Group A with seven points from three games, Cameroon got the ball rolling in the knockout stages on January 24 when they saw off a dogged Comoros side 2-1 courtesy of goals in either half from Vincent Aboubakar and Karl Toko Ekambi.
​
The Olympique Lyon forward was at it again in the quarter-finals as he struck twice in the second half against Gambia five days later to hand his side a second last-four appearance in five years.

© Reuters
​
However, Cameroon's charge for a sixth Africa Cup of Nations title came to an end on Thursday when they were beaten on penalties by Egypt following a goalless 120 minutes at the Paul Biya Stadium.
​
In a cagey affair between the two most decorated sides in the history of the competition, Conceicao's side were guilty of wasteful finishing as they failed to tuck away their chances and with nothing separating the sides after extra time, the Pharaohs claimed a 3-1 win on penalties.
​
This fine run has been in no small part owing to their impressive display at the attacking end of the pitch, where they have scored 20 goals in that time, while managing four clean sheets at the opposite end of the pitch.
​
Next up for Cameroon is an opposing side who they are unbeaten against in each of the last five encounters between the sides since 2015, claiming three draws and two wins, including a 2-1 win in the group stages, and they will feel confident of coming away with the desired result on Saturday.

Team News

© Reuters

Burkina Faso will be boosted by the return of Lorient youngster Ouattara, who missed the game against Senegal last time out after picking up a red card versus Tunisia last Saturday.

On the injury front, Herve Koffi is a major doubt for Saturday's game after the 25-year-old goalkeeper was hooked off the pitch just 36 minutes into the game against Senegal last time out.

Should the Sporting Charleroi man fail to shake off his injury in time for the game, his replacement Sofiane Ouedraogo should come in for his second starting appearance of the tournament.

Despite his side's poor display at the defensive end of the pitch against Senegal, we expect Malo to name an unchanged back four of Steeve Yago, Edmond Tapsoba, Issoufou Dayo and Manchester City youngster Issa Kabore, who is currently on loan at Troyes.

Meanwhile, we expect Cameroon to line up with an attacking trio of Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Aboubakar and Ekambi, who will be desperate to find their scoring boots after failing to really threaten Egypt last time out.

Aboubakar has been on song for the Indomitable Lions, leading the AFCON goalscoring chart with six goals from six games and the former Porto man will be eyeing the Golden Boot prize.

Ekambi has been another crucial player in Cameroon's run so far, scoring five goals and the Olympique Lyon man will certainly be one to keep an eye out for.

At the centre of the park, Andre Zambo Anguissa has now featured in all six games so far, and we expect the Napoli midfielder to team up with Martin Hongla and Samuel Oum Gouet once again.

In defence, Collins Fai, Michael Ngadeu and Nouhou Tolo have been ever-present for Cameroon, starting all six games so far and we expect to see the trio shielding Andre Onana between the sticks.

Burkina Faso possible starting lineup:
Ouedraogo; Kabore, Tapsoba, Dayo, Yago; Toure, Guira, Sangare; Bande, Ouattara, Traore

Cameroon possible starting lineup:
Onana; Fai, Moukoudi, Ngadeu, Tolo; Hongla, Anguissa, Ngamaleu, Ekambi; Aboubakar, Choupo-Moting

We say: Burkina Faso 0-2 Cameroon

Cameroon will head into the game seeking to restore some pride following their defeat against Egypt last time out. While Burkina Faso will be looking to leave the competition with something, they face the stern test of taking on a significantly-superior Cameroon side who will be backed by the home crowd support. We predict the Indomitable Lions will come away with the win in normal time and clinch the bronze medal.

Written by
Joshua Ojele

Previews by email