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#3 Morocco - One-time champions
Morocco head into the AFCON 2021 in terrific form. They maintained a 100% record in their FIFA World Cup 2022 qualification second-round fixture. They have suffered just one loss in all competitive competitions in 2021. They have kept 12 clean sheets this year and thanks to a strong squad are one of the teams to watch out for.
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Youssef En-Nesyri, Romain Saiss, Achraf Hakimi and Yassine Bounou are some of the key players for The Atlas Lions. Morocco last won the competition in 1976 and have made it into the knockout stage in their last two AFCON campaigns.
They were beaten in their Round of 16 fixture by lowly Benin on penalties in 2019 and will be hoping for a better outing here. With Ghana, Comoros and Gabon in Group C alongside Morocco, they should make it into the knockout stage with ease.
#2 Senegal - Trophyless in AFCON
Senegal, the top-ranked African team in the latest FIFA rankings, will be hoping that 2021 is the year for them at AFCON. They had to suffer heartbreak in the 2019 edition after losing 1-0 to Algeria in the title decider.
The Lions of Teranga were unbeaten in their qualification campaign. They also enjoyed great outings in the FIFA World Cup second-round qualifiers, dropping points just once in six games.
They have one of the strongest squads in the competition. Their 27-man squad includes Edouard Mendy, Sadio Mane, Chiekhou Kouyate, Kalidou Koulibaly and Idrissa Gana Gueye.
#1 Algeria - Two-time AFCON champions
Reigning champions Algeria are strong favorites to retain their title at AFCON 2021 as they have played some great football this year. They were the top-scoring side in the AFCON qualification campaign, finding the back of the net 19 times in six games.
They were also the top-scoring side in the FIFA World Cup second-round qualifiers with 25 goals in six games. They also remained unbeaten in those outings. Algeria also won the FIFA Arab Cup last week, defeating Tunisia 2-0 in the final.
Riyad Mahrez will captain the squad against Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone in Group E. Given their great form, they are expected to face no problems in making it into the knockout stage.
