AFCON 2025: DR Congo vs Benin Preview
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All original articlesFourth in the last edition and driven by an exceptional momentum, the DR Congo makes its entry into competition this Tuesday against a transformed Benin. Between the certainties of Sébastien Desabre and the revival of the Guépards under Gernot Rohr, the clash promises to be explosive.
The DR Congo is currently in fine form. After a heroic journey in 2023 ending at the foot of the podium and a qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup that places them on the threshold of a historic return to the World Cup, the Leopards arrive in Morocco with a new status. But for their first match in this Group B, they find an old acquaintance: Benin. If the two nations never met in the final phase of this competition, memories of the 2021 World Cup qualifiers (where the DRC remained unbeaten) still hangs over this meeting.
The DRC, between stability and firepower
The strength of the DRC lies in its continuity. Symbol of this resilience, Chancel Mbemba continues to make history. With 1841 minutes played since 2015, the Marseille defender is the most used active player in the final phase of competition behind Sadio Mané.
Tactically, the Leopards have a clear identity: danger comes from the sides. In the last edition, they dominated the ranking of attacking attempts in the games (122 attempts). Paradoxically, none had ended up in the net. A major axis of progression for this first match where efficiency will be paramount, especially since the DRC has won only one of its last five entries in the competition. A bad habit that the team intends to erase to play the leading roles in this group and fill with confidence before facing Senegal during the second day.
Gernot Rohr’s Benin, the return of the Cheetahs
Absent since 2019 and a historic qualification for the last 16, Benin finally returns to the continental scene. Under the guidance of experienced Gernot Rohr, the Guépards have regained a discipline and an attractive offensive animation. The number one danger is called Junior Olaïtan. He leads all the offensive statistics of his team: assists, crosses, and shots on target.
Deprived of five of their starters, between injuries and suspension, the challenge is immense for the Beninese who hold a statistic that they would like to get rid of: they have never won any match in 14 AFCON games (excluding penalty kicks). Facing the Congolese ogre, breaking this black series would be a strong signal sent to the entire continent before going to face Botswana and Senegal.
The Opta stats Corner
Record longevity: Since 2015, only Sadio Mané has played more minutes than Chancel Mbemba (1841) at the AFCON. The Congolese captain has participated in 20 of his country’s last 21 matches.
Black spell to break: Benin did not win any of its 14 matches played in the final phase of the AFCON (5 draws, 9 defeats). Only Mozambique does worse (15).
Offensive mutation: Junior Olaïtan is the driving force of Benin. During the qualifiers, he was the best of his team for assists (2), shots on target (7) and ball progressions (38).
The paradox of attackers: DR Congo attempted 122 centers in the game during the 2023 AFCON (tournament record), but did not score on any of them.
Lack of execution: Benin failed to score in 64% of their AFCON matches (9 out of 14), one of the highest ratios in history for a team that played at least 10 games.