African Nations betting preview

There is not a lot between many of the sides taking part in this year’s African Cup of Nations so we need to look back at previous renewals in order to determine if any teams are going to have an advantage.

One fact that stands out is how well the host nation usually performs. In twenty five tournaments the host nation has won the African Cup of Nations and there have only been four occasions where the host nation has not reached the semi final. This year’s host is Ghana and with the likes of Chelsea’s Michael Essien they are likely to go very well. If you remember how well they played in the 2006 World Cup then you might be placing your bets before learning about any of the other teams. Bet365 have Ghana as 7/2 second favs.

The 2006 winners were Egypt who are as big as 14/1 with Paddy Power but away from home and without some of the stars (Mido is currently injured) they should be taken on. The runners up to Egypt were Ivory Coast who most bookies have as favourites this time around but they can be backed at 4/1 with Betfred or Totesport. They have a wealth of talent at their disposal including Arsenal’s Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Eboue, Chelsea’s Salomon Kalou and Tottenham’s Didier Zokora. They also have Didier Drogba, probably the best player at the tournament, but he will have to prove his fitness after knee surgery. If Drogba plays then they may be able to overcome Ghana’s home advantage, otherwise Ghana are almost a shoe in.

Cameroon at 6/1 with Bet365 and Nigeria who are 13/2 with Totesport are the only two other nations with single figure prices and although both should go well, neither lack the strength of Ivory Coast and without home advantage are looking at semi final berths at best.

Senegal who are a stand out 14/1 with Coral and their solid but unspectacular squad could represent the best of the each way value. The only other team worth mentioning are World Cup 2010 hosts South Africa who look big at 25/1 with VCBet. They are using this as a prep for the World Cup however, bringing through some of their younger players for some tournament experience.

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