2012 Africa Cup of Nations Third Place Play-off: Ghana v Mali Odds and Betting Preview

MALABO, EQUATORIAL GUINEA - The third place play-off between Ghana and Mali may not be as prestigious as tomorrow’s final, but both teams will be keen to end the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations on a high note.

Ghana go into the game as favourites to triumph within 90 minutes, and the best industry price on a win for the Black Stars is even money (bet £100 to make £100 profit) with Paddy Power, Stan James and bet365. A draw would prolong the drama in Malabo at 12/5 with Coral and a win for Mali can be backed at 3/1 with Sky Bet and Bet Victor.

Punters only have to look as far back as two weeks when the two sides last met, when Ghana defeated Mali by two goals to nil in Franceville. The result does not tell the full tale though, as Ghana needed Gyan to work his magic with a free-kick from outside of the box, whilst Maïga and Diabaté both came desperately close to scoring for the Eagles. Ghana were strong favourites to make it through to Sunday’s final with the bookmakers, but cam unstuck against a gallant Zambia side. In 2008 Ghana won the third place play-off against Ivory Coast, 4-2 in Kumasi, and the first goalscorer on that occasion was Sulley Muntari for the tournament hosts.

Mali do not have a great record in the third place play-off, having lost the match in 1994, 2002 and most recently in 2004. Alain Giresse can hopefully motivate his troops to put in a better performance this year, as they have managed to answer their critics back home in Bamako, who thought that the Eagles would not even make it past the group stage. They played with plenty of determination to lose just 1-0 to overwhelming tournament-favourites Ivory Coast in the semi-final, but ultimately they have struggled to convert their chances in front of goal throughout the tournament. The Eagles have scored just four goals during the tournament, and if they are to exact revenge on the Black Stars then star player Modibo Maïga is going to have to make a splash on the international stage.

In the correct score betting, punters are opting for 1-0 and 2-0 wins for Ghana at 11/2 and 8/1 respectively with Irish firm Paddy Power. A 1-1 draw could be a fair shout, but has been pushed out to odds of 6/1 by the traders at Coral, whilst a 2-2 thriller is on offer at 18/1 with Sky Bet. bet365 will refund correct score bets if the game finishes 0-0, so they could be the best place to go to if you like the look of 1-0 to Mali at an industry high of 9/1. bet365 are also tops about 2-0 to Mali at 18/1, but it is asking a lot from the Eagles to reverse the scoreline from when the two sides met a fortnight ago. There has been a bit of action for 2-1 to the Black Stars on betting exchange Betfair, and it is generally an 8/1 shot with the bookmakers.

Gyan scored the opener two weeks ago, and the 2010 World Cup hero is given a strong chance of repeating that feat at 11/2 with Sky Bet and William Hill and netting the first goal of the game. Jordan Ayew is likely to start in a position just behind Gyan, and the Marseille man is 7/1 with bet365 to score first, which is shorter than his brother Andre, who is at 10/1 due to his position out on the left flank. At bigger odds, Black Stars fans can back Anthony Annan to score first at 28/1 with Coral, but the Vitesse player rarely gets on the score-sheet. Mali will be looking towards Maïga and Diabaté to produce the goods, who can be backed at 11/1 and 8/1 respectively with bet365 in the market. Of the two, Diabaté is the more appealing wager, as he has been looking sharper than his Ligue 1 counterpart.

In other markets, Ghana are 5/2 with 188bet to lead at half-time and full-time, and it is 11/10 with Stan James for both teams to score. Over 2.5 goals is 5/4 with Paddy Power, although the bet only runs for the 90 minutes, whilst Diabaté could be a value punt to score two or more goals for the Eagles at 20/1 with bet365.

The match kicks-off at 8.00pm local time on Saturday 11 February, which is 7.00pm in the UK. It is live on British Eurosport.

Ghana v Mali Match Odds

Ghana v Mali First Goalscorer Odds

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