Sébastien Haller shoots Ivory Coast to victory in the African Cup in their own country

Ivory Coast won the African Cup of Nations in its own country for the third time in history on Sunday evening. Les Éléphants were taken by the hand by the star players in the team in the final against Nigeria. Ex-ADO Den Haag defender William Troost-Ekong gave the Nigerians the lead before halftime, but Ivory Coast won 1-2 thanks to goals from Franck Kessié and ex-Ajax striker Sébastien Haller.

The first big chance of the final came in the 34th minute for Ivory Coast. Simon Adingra fired hard at goal from a difficult angle to the left of the goal, but goalkeeper Stanley Nwabili made a great save.

Four minutes later the opening goal came on the other side. A corner kick was extended by Samuel Chukwueze's head at the first post, after which the header duel that followed was cleverly won by William Troost-Ekong: 1-0.

After the break, Ivory Coast completely turned the final battle for the African Cup of Nations. In the fiftieth minute les Éléphants to level the score when Max Gradel was able to shoot in a rebound five meters from the goal. However, ex-Ajax player Calvin Bassey saved on the goal line on behalf of Nigeria.

Ultimately, Ivory Coast's offensive was unstoppable for Nigeria. The host country used a corner kick after an hour of play, which was misjudged by goalkeeper Nwabili. This allowed Franck Kessié to head in at the far post: 1-1.

The decision was made by Haller nine minutes before the end. The centre-forward very skillfully extended his leg and touched a hard cross from Simon Adingra. The ball fell perfectly into the far corner: 1-2.

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