Africa Cup of Nations: Algeria the smart selection to claim continental success

• Back Algeria to be crowned champions

• Mali deserve support in the groups

• Osimhen and Daka the top scorer picks

Algeria have what it takes to win the African Nations Cup and they're our headline pick to do so in Ivory Coast. The Fennecs won in Egypt in 2019 and have the right attributes to secure a second victory in three attempts this time around.

Mahrez still the main man

Third favourites in the outright betting, Algeria are available at 13/27.50 to secure continental glory. At those odds, we're happy to back them to lift the trophy at Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan on February 11. They're a better selection than Morocco and Senegal, the top two in the betting at 11/26.50 and 6/17.00 respectively.

Algeria's form is outstanding going into the tournament. They're W6-D1-L0 from their last seven matches and W9-D3-L0 in all competitions since the start of 2023.

There's tremendous quality in their starting line-up. Riyad Mahrez may have faded from view at club level by moving to Saudi Arabia but remains a key player for his country. The ex-Manchester City man's one of the continent's top performers and a potential player of the tournament.

Algeria hungry for success

Aissa Mandi and Rene Bensebani form one of the tournament's most effective centre-back pairings. Having recently regained fitness, AC Milan's Ismael Bennacer will be a key midfielder, alongside Nabil Bentaleb, enjoying a fine season in Ligue 1 at Lille.

A number of classy young players have emerged in the past 12 months. These include Wolves left-back Rayan Ait Nouri, Nice midfielder Hichem Boudaoui, Roma playmaker Houssem Aouar, and Toulouse's highly-regarded attacking midfielder Fares Chaibi.

Crucially, Algeria are hungry for success. Their 2021 African Nations Cup title defence was a disaster as they went out in the first round. They then suffered the heartache of missing out on a place at the 2022 World Cup by conceding an injury-time equaliser in the qualifiers.

This tournament really matters to them - and, arguably, more than it does to top two Morocco and Senegal. Morocco may have peaked by making the World Cup semi-finals in Qatar 13 months ago. Holders Senegal remain a force to be reckon with but may fall short.

Mali the choice in group markets

Our solo pick in the group betting markets is Mali to win Group E at 13/82.63. Mali are second favourites to top the pool behind Tunisia (10/111.91) but the difference in quality between the two teams doesn't appear to be as big as the market suggests.

There are arguably more talented players in the Mali side than there are in Tunisia's. Mali provided a glimpse of their quality with their 6-2 pre-tournament victory over Guinea Bissau. Under inexperienced manager Eric Chelle, Mali are under little pressure, as they're not among the favourites in the outright betting, yet they have the potential to grow as the tournament goes on.

Osimhen to hit the mark

A stack of massive names lead the Top Goalscorer market. Mohamed Salah is the 5/16.00 favourite, followed by Sadio Mane 11/26.50, Victor Osimhen 13/27.50, Youssef El-Nesyri 15/28.50, Sebastien Haller 10/111.00 and Riyad Mahrez 11/112.00. The 2021 tournament's top scorer Vincent Aboubakar - he netted eight times for host nation Cameroon two years ago - is joint-sixth favourite at 11/112.00.

The star of an attack-minded Nigeria side, Osimhen must be considered. Nigeria have been drawn alongside Ivory Coast in Group B, and their clash with the hosts will be a tough encounter.

But Napoli striker Osimhen will be licking his lips at the prospect of facing Equatorial Guinea and Guinea Bissau in the Super Eagles' other group fixtures. Those two matches provide him with an early opportunity to pull away at the top of the scoring charts.

Daka the long odds pick

For an in-form top scorer contender at bigger odds, look no further than Zambia's Patson Daka at 20/121.00. He was one of Africa's most prolific finishers at national team level in 2023, scoring nine times in eight appearances for his country.

Daka scored again in Zambia's pre-tournament 1-1 draw vs Cameroon this week. He's likely to take his team's penalties, too, and he's far and away Zambia's most important attacking player.

Zambia are in Group F alongside Morocco, DR Congo and Tanzania. With the top two and the four best third-place teams going through, Zambia have a reasonable chance of making the knockout phase, providing further chances for Daka to score.

Now read about which Premier League stars are taking part!