Caf boss Motsepe says there are no small countries anymore as Afcon approaches

Such are the immense strides made in African football over the past few years that it is difficult to predict clear favourites for the forthcoming Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Morocco.

Ivory Coast will put their title on the line in December and January in a tournament Confederation of African Football (Caf) president Patrice Motsepe says will be one of the Afcon’s closest because there are no so-called “small countries” anymore.

At last year’s Afcon in the Ivory Coast, the hosts were crowned champions by beating West African rivals Nigeria in the final with surprise packages South Africa and DR Congo finishing third and fourth respectively.

Powerhouses like Ghana, Egypt, Senegal, Cameroon, Algeria, Mali, Tunisia and Morocco were underwhelming and it remains to be seen how they are going to perform this time around.

“There are some countries in Africa that have committed themselves to football development and they invest in it,” said Motsepe when announcing that SuperSport had secured the rights to broadcast the tournament at the end of the year.

“When you see Morocco and various other countries do so well, it is because of consistent investment. There is a huge amount of excitement, also in the diaspora.

“It is going to be tough [to win the tournament]. There are probably 10 to 12 nations in Africa who can win, if not all of the countries that have qualified. That is beautiful because there is no small nation anymore.”

Motsepe’s sentiments were shared by Ivory Coast legend Salomon Kalou who said football on the continent had evolved, with so-called smaller teams making major ground on bigger nations.

“Football has changed a lot because you find a country like Lesotho, who have players that play in South Africa and they have improved their quality so well. When they play against a country like Ivory Coast, people expect Ivory Coast to win but it is not like that anymore.

“This is how football is, because there are no longer small teams and we have to realise football has changed because most countries are working hard to produce young players for the future.

“Hopefully one day an African country will win the World Cup.”

Kalou agreed there are a number of countries that could win the tournament.

“It is difficult to say [who is going to win], but you will always have the bigger countries like Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Morocco who will probably be there at the end.

“South Africa are coming back, they have been doing well. They have qualified for the World Cup, and they are back at the level they used to be. South Africans love football and you have big clubs, there is a strong emphasis on youth development.

“It will not be a surprise to see them going far at Afcon and I will be putting my money on South Africa because they can be the surprise element in the tournament.”