Sierra Leone will today go level on points with Chipolopolo should they see off Chad in the Group G Africa Cup of Nations (AfCON) qualifier at the Alassane Ouattara Olympic Stadium in Ivory Coast.

As Chipolopolo prepares for Ivory Coast on Friday, they will have one eye on the proceedings at the Alassane Ouattara Olympic Stadium, knowing too well that the result has a huge bearing on their AfCON dreams.

Zambia would prefer a draw in this game. However, with the two involved teams still in contention for a place at the 2025 Morocco AfCON, none of them will play for a stalemate.

Presently, Zambia’s fate is in its own hands. They sit second in the group with seven points, two better than leaders and defending champions Ivory Coast, while Sierra Leone and Chad have four and two points, respectively.

What will happen if Sierra Leone wins?

Should Sierra Leone manage a win, they will go level on points with Avram Grant’s men, who are out of action until Friday. 

Such a result would put Chipolopolo under immense pressure, as they know too well that they have a date with Sierra Leone in a week’s time.

Grant has previously indicated that the race for second place in the group is between Chipolopolo and Sierra Leone, hinting that Ivory Coast have already sealed qualification; after all, they only need a point from the game against Zambia.  

High on the confidence of beating Ivory Coast in the last game, Sierra Leone will see themselves as favourites more so that Chad has not managed to win a game in the qualifiers so far.

However, underrating Chad may be a mistake in that their previous meeting produced no winner; the match ended goalless. Chad will feel they can get something out of this game and push qualification to the wire.

So far, only seven teams have booked their place, joining hosts Morocco. These include Algeria, Burkina Faso, Angola, Cameroon, the DRC, Egypt and Senegal.

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