AFCON: Burkina Faso coach Traoré admits Equatorial Guinea caused problems

Burkina Faso national team head coach Brama Traoré felt that Equatorial Guinea proved a difficult side during their opening fixture of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco on Wednesday.

The Stallions were forced to produce late drama, scoring twice deep into stoppage time to stun 10-man Equatorial Guinea 2-1 at the Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca.

At the start of the second half, Equatorial Guinea were reduced to ten men after Basilo Ndung was shown a straight red card in the 50th minute. However, despite Burkina Faso enjoying the numerical numbers it was Equatorial Guinea, who struck first.

Substitute Marvin Aniebo scored from a powerful header three minutes after coming on. However, in fifth minute of added time substitute György Menongo pounced to level the score for the Stallions.

In the eighth minute of stoppage time, Edmond Tapsoba powered home the winner to hand the Stallions a superb comeback in the AFCON in the current campaign.

The victory was not easy against a strong opponent

“This was our first match of the tournament and it was very important for us in order to enter the competition properly,” Traoré told the media after quoted by CAFOnline.com.

“The victory was not easy against a strong opponent in Equatorial Guinea, who caused us some problems. We decided to play in a way that we believed would lead us to victory.

“After 60 minutes it was not possible to achieve that, so we worked hard to equalise and then pushed with all our strength to secure the win, which we are very happy about.”

Burkina Faso defender Edmond Tapsoba, who was named man of the match, said: “I feel great joy after this victory. We did not give up after going behind; we scored two goals and won the match. I’m happy with what is happening to us in this tournament.

“We believed we could come back in the game, and it is in our nature not to stop or lose belief when we are trailing or facing defeat. This Man of the Match award is the result of collective work by our entire team, and I dedicate it to all the members of the Burkina Faso national team.”

Burkina Faso will return to face Algeria, who kicked off their campaign with a 3-0 win against Sudan, on Sunday, December 28 at Moulay Hassan Stadium.