<\/p>\n

GROUP A<\/h2>\n

Gabon<\/strong><\/p>\n

Euphoric support helped drive Gabon<\/a> to the quarter-finals the last time theyhosted the tournament<\/a> \u2013 just five years ago \u2013 but the mood in the country is different now<\/a> due to political tension and public dismay following the disputed outcome of September\u2019s presidential election. It will be interesting to see the crowd reaction to any appearance in a stadium by Ali Bongo, the declared winner of that election<\/a> and, therefore, still at the helm of a country of which he took charge in 2009 after the death of his father,<\/a> who had been in power since 1967. Leadership of the national team, meanwhile, changes much more frequently and the Panthers may or may not go into this tournament under the stewardship of the Spaniard Jos\u00e9 Luis Camacho, who was appointed only last month but has already been threatened with dismissal after complaining about the composition of his backroom staff. Gabon have a good goalkeeper, the veteran Didier Ovono, but their strength is attacking, with the Juventus midfielder Mario Lemina helping to supply the China-based forward Malick Evouna and, of course, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who will have to excel for Gabon to get as far as they did five years go. Key player<\/strong> Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund)<\/p>\n

Guinea-Bissau<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reaching the finals for the first time was a momentous achievement for the team from this small country, as they topped a qualifying group including Congo, Kenya and the 2012 champions Zambia. Advancing to the knockout stages would be even more extraordinary, particularly given Guinea Bissau\u2019s inadequate preparations. With the national federation impoverished, the team have not played any friendlies since qualification. The manager, Baciro Cand\u00e9, said after qualification that he had convinced several Europe-based players of Bissau-Guinean extraction to take part in the tournament but most of them, other than full-back Tomas Dabo, had second thoughts in light of the ramshackle buildup. Worse, injury has deprived Cand\u00e9 of key players from the qualifying campaign, most notably the striker Cicero Semedo. Cand\u00e9\u2019s final squad is entirely Europe-based, although several of the players do not have clubs. Most of those who are employed play in Portugal and the manager says they have been inspired by that country\u2019s triumph at Euro 2016. They have nobody like Cristiano Ronaldo but Zezinho, a former Sporting Lisbon midfielder who now plays in Greece, does take a mean free-kick. Key player<\/strong> Zezinho (Levadiakos)<\/p>\n

Burkina Faso<\/strong><\/p>\n

Having missed out on qualification for the last World Cup by a single goal, the Stallions reached this tournament thanks to a goal nine minutes into stoppage time in a chaotic last qualifier against Botswana. Manager Paulo Duarte is in his second stint in charge of the team. On his two previous appearances with them in the finals he failed to guide Burkina get beyond the group stage. They reached the final the year after he left<\/a> the first time \u2013 in 2013 \u2013 and many of the players who featured in that campaign remain in the squad, though whether the likes of Jonathan Pitroipa and Aristide Banc\u00e9 can still sparkle as they did four years ago remains to be seen. If they do, and if Bertrand Traor\u00e9 flourishes, then Burkinabe\u2019s flair, allied to their power and organisation, could take them to the latter stages.Key player<\/strong> Bertrand Traor\u00e9 (Chelsea)<\/p>\n

Cameroon<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Indomitable Lions<\/a> have long been sabotaged by Incorrigible Administrators and in-fighting so it seems unlikely that they will go far in a tournament that they reached by beating minnows and drawing twice with South Africa. Seven (at the time of writing) players have resisted call-ups, including Liverpool\u2019s Jo\u00ebl Matip<\/a>and Schalke\u2019s Eric Choupo-Moting. Not only are they bereft of the tenacity of their glory years but Cameroon lack quality, especially creativity, even if they do have dangerous full-backs and wide players and Vincent Aboubakar is a fine striker. Key player<\/strong> Vincent Aboubakar (Besiktas)<\/p>\n