Equatorial Guinea delivered a stunning performance on Ivory Coast's home turf, sealing a dominant 4-0 victory to claim the top spot in Group A of the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations. The win guarantees their automatic qualification to the last 16, alongside Nigeria, who finished second in the group. The host nation, Ivory Coast, entered the crucial match seeking redemption after suffering a lone-goal defeat against Nigeria on matchday two. However, Equatorial Guinea took the lead in the 42nd minute through Emilio Nsue. Despite Ivory Coast attempting to level the score one minute later, VAR intervened, disallowing Ibrahim Sangaré's goal for offside, leaving them trailing at halftime. Meanwhile, in another simultaneous match, Nigeria led at the break against Guinea Bissau. Despite their inability to find the net themselves, Nigeria secured a fortunate 1-0 lead at halftime, courtesy of an own goal by Opa Sangante. As the second half commenced, Ivory Coast pressed for an equalizer, with home crowd support. Their hopes were dashed when Jean-Philippe Krasso's 68th-minute goal was once again canceled by VAR for offside. Exploiting the home side's low morale, Equatorial Guinea capitalized with two quick goals in the 73rd and 75th minutes from Pablo Ganet and Emilio Nsue, securing a commanding lead. With Ivory Coast deflated, Jannick Buyla netted the fourth goal in the 88th minute, sealing Equatorial Guinea's emphatic victory. In the other match, Nigeria settled for a lone-goal victory against Guinea Bissau, finishing level on points (7) with Equatorial Guinea but behind on goals. While Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria celebrate their progression to the last 16, Ivory Coast must await the conclusion of other group games to determine if they can secure a spot through the back door among the top four third-placed teams from all six groups.