Guinea vs Gambia Prediction: National Elephants to stomp all over Scorpions’ dreams

A 3-0 defeat to Senegal in their opening fixture of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations has left Gambia with a lot to do in their remaining two fixtures, and the first of those arrives on Friday evening (KO, 20:00), as the Scorpions do battle with Guinea at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium.

Guinea themselves will be looking to secure victory in the Yamoussoukro encounter, but there is slightly less pressure on the National Elephants who already have a point on the board courtesy of a 1-1 draw with Cameroon on Monday.

That result was even more impressive considering they had to spend more than half of the game a man down, but roles will be reversed for them in this one as they are handed the tag of favourites against a nation ranked 46 places below them in the FIFA World Rankings.

Team News

Bundesliga hotshot Serhou Guirassy missed Guinea's first game of the tournament due to a minor thigh injury but there are positive sounds around him heading into Friday's fixture. Whether he will be fit enough to start, though, is unclear.

One man definitely ruled out is Francois Kemano, who was handed a straight red card against Cameroon.

Gambia had disciplinary issues of their own against Senegal, with Eboue Adams dismissed just before half-time. The Cardiff City midfielder will now serve a suspension.

Assan Ceesay, who scored six goals in Serie A last season before completing a move to Saudi Arabian side Damac, will hope to earn a promotion from the bench.

Match Odds

Guinea are 21/20 to win and secure a top-three finish in Group C, with the draw at 15/8 and a victory for Gambia priced at 11/4.

Both teams to score is 6/5 and it's 13/8 for over 2.5 goals.

Guinea to win @ 21/20

Guinea took a surprise early lead against Cameroon but looked well set for victory until Kamano's red card. The Indomitable Lions scored early in the second-half but their opponents hung on bravely for a point, and that fighting spirit should serve them well as they prepare to face a Gambia side on the end of a bruising 3-0 defeat.

The Scorpions have some talented forwards in their squad with Feyenoord's Yankuba Minteh - on loan from Newcastle United - arguably the pick of the bunch, but Guinea certainly have more established stars in their side, and the potential return of Guirassy - second only to Harry Kane in the Bundesliga goalscoring charts this term - is a huge boost.

Guinea's final group game is against Senegal and they won't want to face the reigning champions without a victory to their name, so I expect them to go all out for the three points in this one.

Mohamed Bayo to score anytime @ 21/10

Guinea will want to introduce Guirassy to the competition as quickly as possible but they also have another prolific marksman in their ranks in Bayo.

The 25-year-old enjoyed a terrific season in Ligue 1 in 2021/22, scoring 14 goals for Clermont before sealing a big move to Lille. The transfer didn't go according to plan for club or player, with Bayo scoring just four times in the French top-tier last season, but he's already matched that total on loan at Le Havre this term and will have taken extra confidence from his goal against Cameroon on Monday.

That was his fifth international goal for Guinea and 21/10 for him to score anytime feels generous given the uncertainty surrounding the number of minutes Guirassy will get.

Check out the rest of our AFCON Betting Tips here.