Sebastien Haller scores late winner as hosts Ivory Coast crowned AFCON champions
Sebastien Haller scored the winner to lift hosts Ivory Coast to their third AFCON title (Themba Hadebe/AP)
Cancer survivor Sebastien Haller inspired hosts Ivory Coast to their third Africa Cup of Nations title with a late winner to seal a 2-1 comeback victory over Nigeria in Abidjan.
Five of the last six host nations to reach the final had been crowned AFCON champions, but the Ivory Coast’s appearance in this edition at one point looked unlikely, their 4-0 group-stage defeat to Equatorial Guinea leading to the mid-tournament sacking of Jean-Louis Gasset.
The Elephants, who under caretaker boss Emerse Fae earned the nickname ‘the Zombies’ after resurrecting their campaign, recovered to reach the final but fell behind in the showpiece when Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong headed in a 38th-minute opener against the run of play.
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However, that was cancelled out by Franck Kessie in the second half midway through the second half as the Ivory Coast drew level.
And, with less than 10 minutes remaining, Haller, who in July 2022 was diagnosed with testicular cancer and returned to action with Borussia Dortmund just over a year ago, found the finishing touch to send the 60,000-seat Alassane Ouattara Stadium into raptures.
Former West Ham striker Haller looked to fire his side into an early lead when he flicked Simon Adingra’s cross wide of Stanley Nwabali’s right post, and, while the Elephants did not make much of a handful of early set-pieces, the hosts controlled more of the opening action than their more cautious opponents.
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