Mali stands in way of DR Congo's 2nd CHAN title

SUNDAY Third Place Guinea vs Côte dIvoire, 3pm - SS9/RTV FinalDR Congo vs Mali, 6:30pm - SS9/RTV The Democratic Republic of Congo takes on Mali in the final of the 2016 African Nations Championship (CHAN) on Sunday at at Amahoro National Stadium, seeking to become the first team to win the tournament twice since its inception in 2009. DR Congo won the maiden tournament in Côte dIvoire in 2009 when they defeated Ghana 2-0 in the final, and Jean-Florent Ibenge’s side has fought hard to get back to the final after being knocked out in the quarters in the last two tournaments in Sudan (2011) and in South Africa in 2014. They needed extra-time goals to overcome hosts Rwanda in the last eight and dumped out hard-fighting Guinea 5-4 on penalties in the semi-finals. Jean-Florent Ibenge, who led Les Léopards to third place at the 2015 African Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea, said, “It is big game for us; we dont want to win it now only for our fans who are came here to supports, but for all Congolese people.” “It will be difficult against Mali because we know they are good side and that means we have to be at our best if we’re to go home with the trophy,” the 58-year tactician noted. DR Congo will miss the services of inspirational defender Padou Boumpunda, who scored their winner against Rwanda, after picking up a second yellow card against Guinea. Meanwhile, Mali seeking a first title, reached the final after beating Zambia in the quarter-finals and Côte dIvoire in the last four. Mali go into the final as the only team not to lose a game in the 16-team championship, which is reserved for players featuring in their respective domestic leagues. “The final is different from other matches. We respect DR Congo but we will go into the game with purpose of winning and we did it in the previous matches in this tournament,” Mali head coach Djibril Dramé said. He added, “We know our opponents and we respect them, but we will do our best against them to secure a win.” Dramé’s youthful Mali team, which led by their under-17 skipper Abdoul Dante, are playing in their first-ever final, in three CHAN appearances., however, they will be without key midfielder Sekou Diarra, who is suspended for the match. In previous meetings, Mali have never lost to DR Congo. In the three meetings they have won two and drawn one match in all competitions. Meanwhile, the final match will be preceded by the third place playoff between Guinea and Côte dIvoire, kick off at 3pm The winner of CHAN 2016 between DR Congo and Mali will receive the trophy and $750,000 while the runner-up will earn $400,000. Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire will take home $250,000 each while each of the eight quarter-finalists including Rwanda, Tunisia, Zambia and Cameroon will receive $175,000. Past CHAN winners: 2009 (Côte d’Ivoire) – DR Congo2011 (Sudan) – Tunisia2014 (South Africa) – Libya

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Mali stands in way of DR Congo's 2nd CHAN title