Host nation Ivory Coast faced a shocking Africa Cup of Nations setback as Equatorial Guinea pulled off a remarkable 4-0 victory in Abidjan. 

Equatorial Guinea’s Emilio Nsue netted twice, complemented by Pablo Ganet’s impressive 25-yard free-kick and Yannick Buyla’s late goal, securing a historic win and claiming the top spot in Group A.

The defeat puts Ivory Coast in a precarious position, finishing third in the group and now dependent on other group-stage outcomes to determine their fate. 

Despite Ivory Coast’s Ibrahim Sangare having two equalizers ruled out, the team squandered numerous opportunities, and Equatorial Guinea capitalized on their clinical finishing.

The final whistle witnessed Ivorian players visibly distraught, greeted with boos from a disappointed home crowd at Alassane Ouattara Stadium. 

Equatorial Guinea’s celebration, on the other hand, echoed their unexpected success, surpassing three-time champions Nigeria and two-time winners Ivory Coast in Group A.

Equatorial Guinea’s impressive performance in this match builds on their achievement of reaching the semi-finals as hosts in the 2015 Afcon tournament. 

They will now advance to face a third-placed team from Group C, D, or E in the last 16 on Sunday.

For Ivory Coast, the wait for their fate continues as they rely on results from the remaining groups to determine if their three points and a goal difference of -3 will be sufficient to secure a spot in the knockout stages.