Ivory Coast have booked their place in the quarter-finals of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations as Group B winners after a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Tanzania in Casablanca.The Lady Elephants secured seven points from their three group matches and remained unbeaten, completing a strong return to the continental tournament after a 12-year absence.Nsira Ouedraogo put Cte d’Ivoire ahead just before half-time, converting Ines Konan’s final pass in the 44th minute to give coach Reynald Pedros’ side a valuable lead going into the break.Konan then doubled the advantage from the penalty spot in the 68th minute, capping another influential performance from the forward who has played a significant role in the Lady Elephants’ attacking efforts throughout the group stage.Tanzania were eventually rewarded for their late pressure when Diana Msewa converted a penalty in the ninth minute of stoppage time, but the Twiga Stars could not find a second goal before the final whistle.The defeat ended Tanzania’s hopes of reaching the knockout stage, despite a campaign that included their first-ever victory at the WAFCON.Tanzania entered Tuesday’s decisive game knowing that a win would have been enough to send them into the last eight. However, they had to cope without Hasnath Ubamba, who was suspended after receiving a red card in their previous match against Burkina Faso.The Twiga Stars had already produced one of the tournament’s notable results by defeating South Africa for their first WAFCON victory, but they struggled to maintain that momentum against an Ivory Coast side that proved more effective when opportunities mattered most.
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