I tip Ghana and Algeria to reach the final of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola. I expect the renascent Black Stars of Ghana to eclipse the Super Green Eagles of Nigeria in Thursday’s semi final and I also believe Algeria can confirm their superiority over Egypt in the other semi encounter.

Both pairings are highly explosive for peculiar reasons. Ghana and West African neighbours Nigeria are traditional rivals and each side has over the years failed to acknowledge the superiority of the other. Even though Ghana has four African title triumphs as against Nigeria’s two, Nigeria’s Olympic Gold at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 put them in a class of their own but Ghana can counter that with the 2009 junior World Cup won in Egypt, the first by an African country.

So you could see that in terms of achievements both nations seem to be at par. Incidentally, the two countries started Angola 2010 on a poor note both losing 3-1 respectively. Ghana were beaten 3-1 by Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria lost by the same margin to Egypt. It is to the credit of both teams that they have succeeded in reaching the medal zone.

In their exciting semi final encounters, Nigeria was stretched to an energy sapping marathon race that went into extra time and eventually they won on the penalty lottery. 

In this match Nigeria showed a dearth in striking power and against the well knit Ghana defence, backed by a lively attacking machinery Nigeria could really be in trouble.

The statistics may be deceptive because Ghana has scored only three goals and conceded three but don’t forget that two of the goals against Burkina Faso and Angola were precious enough to send them to the last four.

Nigeria has a tidier score sheet with five goals in favour and three against. After the initial defeat 3-1 to Egypt the Green Eagles beat Benin 1-0 and trounced Mozambique 3-0. This has been a remarkable recovery similar to the 1990 episode in Algeria when Nigeria lost the opening match against the hosts 5-0. I recall the media bashing of the then German coach Westerhof who was suddenly nicknamed “westerflop” but Nigeria fought back gamely to reach the final where they lost to the same side 1-0.

History definitely is on the side of Nigeria but the youthful Black Stars have shown that they are capable of rising to the occasion. If they can conjure the same steely character they showed against hosts, Angola in the quarter finals Ghana will reach their first final since 1992 and ultimately make their dreams of a fifth cup triumph a reality.

It is reported that plane loads of supporters are coming down to watch the North African derby between Egypt and Algeria. This should be a big security concern for the hosts and it is the wish of football lovers that the nasty scenes that have engulfed their previous encounters would not be repeated.

Algeria who started the competition as if they were in a hurry to go home losing to unsung Malawi 3-0 progressed steadily and their elimination of tournament favourites Cote d’Ivoire, completely upset the form guide. 

From all indications, the team has peaked at the right time and it won’t be surprising to see them in the final. My observation is that Egypt were not all that impressive in the quarter final match against luckless Cameroun and it won’t be surprising to see their sixth title ambition end at the semi-final stage.

At this juncture, I would like to congratulate Angolan fans for still patronizing the games after the sad exit of the Palencras Negras. That is sportsmanship at its best. This is just the opposite of what we had in Cote d’Ivoire in 1984 when the hosts were bundled out early. Attendance was so poor that gates had to be opened free for the final between Cameroun and Nigeria to attract fans and thus give the tournament some glamour.

Congrats Angola for being pleasant hosts. Cheers everybody and keep loving sports.