Ivory Coast kick off Afcon campaign with 2-0 win over Guinea-Bissau

Ivory Coast’s Seko Fofana and Jean-Philippe Krasso scored in each half as the hosts completed a 2-0 group A victory over Guinea-Bissau in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) opening game played in energy-sapping humidity on Saturday.

Fofana gave his side a fourth-minute lead with a superb shot from the edge of the box before Krasso made up for an earlier miss when he acrobatically netted a second just before the hour.

The Ivorians were always favourites against a Guinea-Bissau team who have now not won any of their 10 Afcon finals matches, but the hosts — with several players missing through injury — will be pleased to have started their campaign on a positive note in front of an expectant 60,000 crowd.

Twice winners, Ivory Coast next play on Thursday when they face Nigeria in the biggest match-up in the group, while Guinea-Bissau take on Equatorial Guinea on the same day.

The games will again be played at Abidjan’s Alassane Ouattara Stadium.