In tragic circumstances, the Africa Cup of Nations in Angola got underway yesterday. The why’s and wherefore’s of what actually happened last week will carry on until well after the World Cup in South Africa because the implications are just too dreadful to contemplate, with the greatest ever festival of sport about to engulf the African continent for the first time.

Personally, I fully endorse the decision to continue with the Africa  Cup of Nations but fully understand the reasons why Togo felt unable to compete. However, it is right to play the tournament because there is no way we should ever let a bunch of rebels, hooligans, terrorists, criminals, whatever you like to call them, interfere with our way of life and for pursuing our ambitions.

For the last decade, Africa has developed the game of football faster than anywhere else in the world. Their teams are now more organised, more tactically aware, more technically gifted, fitter, better trained and skilful, than they have ever been. The game on the African continent has exploded over the last decade and now all the top teams in the world have scouting operations in Africa and help with the development of youngsters over there.

As for the tournament itself, we see all the usual suspects at the top of the betting charts, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria and Egypt. I certainly expect the winner to come from this group. The Elephants (Ivory Coast) have come unstuck at the last 2 African Cups to Egypt and they will be desperate to put right that anomaly and have been made tournament favourites, at a prohibitive 9/4.

As so often, when it gets to the knock-out stage, the favourites don’t always get it their own way and the Elephants have suffered with this over the last few competitions, so it does make you wonder about their mental strength and at the price they don’t offer the value, albeit that the Drog will be leading their line and surely scoring one or two goals along the way. They also, do have the talent and experience, which is why they are favourites but not value, in my mind. More on Africa Cup of Nations