Cote d’Ivoire vs Benin Prediction and Betting Tips

Cote d’Ivoire take to the pitch for the first time since clinching the AFCON title when they take on Benin in a friendly on Saturday (March 23).

Goals from Frank Kessie and Sebastian Haller inspired Cote d’Ivoire to a remarkable 2-1 comeback win over Nigeria in the Africa Cup of Nations in February.

Les Elephants struggled in the early stages of the continental showpiece, finishing as one of the best losers in the group stage before hitting their stride in the knockouts. Cote d’Ivoire head into this game on a run of one win in five friendlies, losing twice, since November 2022.

Benin, meanwhile, failed to pick up their first win of the World Cup qualifiers, as they were held to a goalless draw by Lesotho last time out. Gernot Rohr’s men are without a win in 15 games across competitions.

Rohr’s men kicked off their quest for a place in the World Cup with a 2-1 loss against 1996 African champions South Africa in November 2023. Benin, who are 98th in the FIFA rankings, follow this game with an exciting clash with Senegal on March 26.

Cote d’Ivoire vs Benin Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

Cote d’Ivoire have been imperious in the fixture, winning 12 of the last 17 meetings and losing twice.
Cote d’Ivoire have won one of their last five friendlies: a 5-1 thrashing of Sierra Leone on January 6.
Benin are without a win in 15 games across competitions, losing nine since March 2022.

Cote d’Ivoire vs Benin Prediction

With the thrill from clinching the AFCON title still in the air, Cote d’Ivoire head into the game with sky-high confidence. Given the gulf in class and quality between the two sides, expect Les Elephants to come away with a comfortable victory.

Prediction: Cote d’Ivoire 2-0 Benin

Cote d’Ivoire vs Benin Betting Tips

Tip 1: Result - Cote d’Ivoire to win

Tip 2: Over 2.5 goals - No (There have been fewer than three goals scored in five of Cote d’Ivoire’s last six games.)

Tip 3: Over 4.5 cards - Yes (There have been at least five bookings in four of Les Elephants’ last five outings.)

About the author

Joshua is a European and international football writer at Sportskeeda who covers news and match previews. He fell in love with the sport watching Didier Drogba and Samuel Eto’o win titles at club and international level, and his passion for the sport led him to become a professional football writer. He has an overall professional experience of 5 years.

Joshua supports Chelsea at club level, having witnessed a number of African stars break records with the club. Drogba’s equalizing header and match-winning shootout penalty for Chelsea against Bayern Munich in the 2012 UEFA Champions League final left a last impact on him. His favorite player is Eden Hazard and favorite manager is Jose Mourinho, who gave him the most joyous days as a Blues supporter. He believes that Cristiano Ronaldo is unlucky to be born in Messi’s era and favors the Argentine in the G.O.A.T. debate.

Joshua also follows the Portuguese Primeira Liga and the Nigeria Professional Football League and loves to play football during his free time. Having attained a B.Sc. in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Ibadan, he employs his problem-solving skills in crafting articles while doing extensive research to ensure each article is well thought out and crafted.

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Edited by Bhargav