2021 AFCON Winner/Top Goalscorer Doubles Odds

Egypt will be coming into the African Cup of Nations quietly confident that they can go all the way in the tournament, as they are the record seven times winners of the competition itself.

Carlos Quieroz’s side arguably have the best player in the world at present in Mohamed Salah, as the Liverpool man is the current Premier League top scorer with 16 goals and nine assists in 20 matches, averaging a goal every 111 minutes, meaning the 29-year-old’s tally as far in the campaign as a whole stands at 23 goals in 29 appearances across all competitions.

Senegal will come into the AFCON in 2021 desperate to go one better than they did last time out, having finished as runners-up to Alegria in 2019.

Les Lions de have some high profile players amongst their ranks such as Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly, Idrissa Gueye, but perhaps non more so than Liverpool’s Sadio Mane.The 29-year-old managed three goals in AFCON 2019 which saw him finish as second top scorer in the competition, just two behind Nigeria’s Odion Ighalo.

At present, the former Senegal man has scored 10 goals in 26 appearances for Liverpool this season and will be expected to carry the hopes of the nation in attack. In Group B, Senegal will face the likes of Zimbabwe, Guinea and Malawi.

As mentioned above, Senegal will be looking to win what would be their first-ever AFCON tournament, having suffered the heartbreaks of finishing runners-up in both 2002 and 2019.

Perhaps this could be the coming of age for Les Lions de having came so close last time out, and arguably, with having one of the strongest squads in the competition, there is every chance that they could go all the way this time.

Someone that could challenge Mane to be top scorer at AFCON is Salah, who will be looking to capitalise on the likes of Nigeria, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau’s defence in Group D, having already scored 23 goals for Liverpool this season.

Ivory Coast will certainly fancy their chances of going far in AFCON 2021, having last won the competition back in 2015 for just the second time in their history.

Patrice Beaumelle’s side boasts talents such as Eric Bailly, Franck Kessie, Wilfried Zaha and Sebastien Haller, meaning that they have a well-rounded squad that will be expected to delve deep into the tournament and potentially win it, especially having exited the tournament at the quarter-finals stage in 2019 on penalties against Algeria.

A player that comes into this competition in fine form for his club side is Haller of Ajax. The 27-year-old who only switched his allegiances to Cote d’Ivoire in November 2020 became the fastest player to score 10 goals in a single Champions League campaign when he fired in the opener in Ajax’s 4-2 home win over Sporting Lisbon on matchday six of Group C in early December.

Haller’s goal tally across all competitions currently stands at 22 this season and with the likes of Zaha and Nicolas Pepe set to provide him with service, he could be a contender for the Golden Boot and maybe even spearhead Ivory Coast’s charge to AFCON glory.

As previously mentioned, the Ivory Coast have a good chance of winning the upcoming AFCON tournament due to the quality that they possess in their squad, as their squad is filled with established European based footballers that have proven themselves in European competitions such as the Champions League and Europa League.

Riyad Mahrez is a name that will be on many viewers lips of the upcoming AFCON, as the 30-year-old helped to inspire Algeria to their first title since the 1990 edition of this competition.

The Manchester City winger scored three goals last time out, including a 95th-minute winner in the semi-finals against Nigeria and has been in good form for City coming into this year’s tournament in Cameroon, firing in five goals in six Champions League matches, as well as managing 10 goal contributions across 16 Premier League appearances.

Algeria will be hoping to defend their crown as champions of Africa coming into AFCON 2021.

Last time out, the Greens displayed their stern character, finishing top of a group consisting of Senegal, Kenya and Tanzania, before defeating the likes of Guinea, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Senegal once again in the final, winning every match at the tournament.

With players such as Said Benrahma, Mahrez, Ismael Bennacer and more in their ranks, there is a chance that they will be strong competitors for glory once again.

So far, Haller has shown early signs of clicking well with his Ivory Coast teammates since joining their squad in late 2020, as the 27-year-old has scored three goals in eight matches, on top of the 22 goals the former West Ham man has scored for Ajax across all competitions this season.

Last but not least on this list is the double of Nigeria and Kelechi Iheanacho that comes in at 100/1.

The Super Eagles are without key players such as Victor Osimhen and Emmanuel Dennis coming into this year’s AFCON, but, they will still likely put on a good show for their fans, with Interim Manager Augustine Eguavoen leading the charge.

Nigeria’s last win in this competition came back in 2013, but, their experiences in 2019 where they were beaten by Mahrez’s stoppage-time strike in the semi-finals for Algeria could unite the side in what is a troubled time. Eguavoen’s men will take on Egypt, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau in Group D.

Iheanacho will be expected to lead the way for the Super Eagles, despite only managing four goals across all competitions this season. The 25-year-old will be looking to rediscover the goalscoring form that saw him score 11 league goals in 12 matches for Leicester City at the end of last season.

The Foxes forward will line up next to some high profile names, such as club teammate Wilfried Ndidi, as well as Ighalo and Alex Iwobi.