Senegal look set to reach another Afcon final

Senegal are a match away from reaching their second successive final in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon).

They will meet Burkina Faso in the first semifinal tonight (9pm) at Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, well aware that a victory will see them through to their second final in a row.

They lost to Algeria in the 2019 final and will want to do better this time, but they need to get over the Stallions first, who are standing in their way.

While Burkina Faso should be delighted by reaching the semifinal of the competition, they know that they have not done badly against the Lions of Teranga in the past.

In the 12 meetings between the two sides across all competitions, the fixture has been closely contested with Senegal winning three, while the Stallions won two.

Seven games have ended in draws, including their last three fixtures. Burkina Faso are the dark horses of the tournament and will be looking to continue with their fairytale journey in search of their first Afcon title.

But they are also facing a star-studded Senegal side, led by Sadio Mane, that looks unstoppable at the moment and desperate to win the title.

Following a slow start in their group stages where they scored once from a penalty, Senegal seems to have hit their stride.

They managed to beat Cape Verde 2-0 before a dominant display against Equatorial Guinea in the quarterfinals where they won 3-1.

But their group stage was not the most inspiring as they won one and drew two of their three games.

And they head into the fixture unbeaten in 11 matches, registering eight wins and three draws. They have also been good in defence, conceding just one goal in their five matches.

While the Lions of Teranga may look to have the upper hand heading into this fixture, the Stallions should not be taken lightly after they surprised Tunisia in the quarterfinals, beating them 1-0.

Burkina Faso kicked off their campaign with a 1-2 loss to hosts Cameroon but did manage to come back stronger with four points in their next two matches.

They have now kept up their trend of strong Afcon performances, having reached the semis in three of their last four tournaments in 2013 [final and lost to Nigeria] and recently.

Cameroon will face Egypt in the mouth-watering second semifinal tomorrow at 9pm at Olembe Stadium.