Johannesburg. The 2012 Africa Cup of Nations is fast approaching and the teams taking part are keen to begin their run in the tournament, with an eye on the ultimate prize.

The 2012 Afcon takes place from Jan. 21 to Feb. 12, and will be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
Some teams will be experiencing their first participation at the competition, while others will be aiming to write their names in the record books as Africa’s best when the final takes place at the Stade d’Angondje in Libreville on February 12.

We introduce you to the 16 teams that will be taking part in this highly-anticipated competition.
Here are the profiles of some of the teams eyeing the continental glory.

Ghana’s Black Star
Ghana were a Luis Suarez handball away from becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2010 and go into this event as one of the big favourites.Uruguay striker Suarez was sent-off for deliberately blocking a shot on the line with his arm, Asamoah Gyan missed the resulting penalty, and Ghana bowed out of the event on spot kicks. What a cruel mistress soccer can be.

They showed fearlessness in that tournament that should have galvanized the other African nations who under performed in 2010. One of their leading lights, Kevin-Prince Boateng has retired from the international stage, however, and will be a big miss.

Michael Essien, who misses the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations through injury, is tipping his teammates to reach the final in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. The Black Stars, though, have not won the tournament since 1982 and Essien should be wary of heightening expectation from the sidelines.

A weakened field – Cameroon, Nigeria and Egypt are all missing – certainly bodes well for Ghana, and Serbian coach Goran Stevanovic will know the tournament represents a golden chance to add one more African Champion star above the GFA crest.

Failure to at least reach the final could mark the end of Stevanovic’s tenure, and the former Partizan Belgrade boss has been in bullish mood ahead of the event.

23-man Ghana Africa Cup of Nations Squad:
Goalkeepers: Adam Kwarasey (Stromsgodset, Norway), Daniel Adjei (Liberty Professionals, Ghana), Ernest Sowah (Berekum Chelsea, Ghana)

Defenders: Samuel Inkoom (Dnipro, Ukraine), John Paintsil (Leicester City, England), Daniel Opare (Standard Liege, Belgium), Masawudu Alhassan (Genoa, Italy), Lee Addy (Dalian Aerbim, China), John Boye (Rennes, France), John Mensah (Lyon, France), Jonathan Mensah (Evian, France), Isaac Vorsah (Hoffenheim, Germany)

Midfielders: Charles Takyi (St Pauli, Germany), Emmanuel Agyemang Badu (Udinese ,Italy), Derek Boateng (Dnipro, Ukraine), Anthony Annan (Vitesse Arnhem, Netherlands), Mohammed Abu (Stromsgodset, Norway), Kwadwo Asamoah (Udinese, Italy), Sulley Muntari (Inter Milan, Italy), Andre Ayew (Marseille, France)
Forwards: Prince Tagoe (Bursaspor, Turkey), Asamoah Gyan (Al Ain, UAE), Jordan Ayew (Marseille, France).

What they say:
Goran Stevanovic
“I said when I came here that I wanted to win the African Cup and now I think we are ready to win it. I think there is a good balance in the team to be able to do that. This will not be easy as there are some very good teams like Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Mali who want to challenge us for the title. But we can do it. I have not changed my mind about our chances and hopes.”

Player to Watch:
Andre Ayew
Key to Ghana’s hopes of ending their 30-year trophy drought will be the Marseille winger. The BBC African Footballer of the Year for 2011, Ayew notched 11 times for the club last season and has been amongst the goal scorers once again in 2011-12.

The 22-year-old shone at the 2010 World Cup and it has been suggested, with good reason, that Ghana may have made it to the semi-finals had he not missed the Uruguay match through suspension. Son of Abedi “Pele” Ayew, who won the inaugural BBC award in 1991, the youngster’s brother Jordan has also made the squad.

Renard, Captain
ZAMBIA’S CHIPOLOPOLO
Zambia. The 2012 Africa Cup of Nations is fast approaching and the teams taking part are keen to begin their run in the tournament, with an eye on the ultimate prize.

The 2012 Afcon takes place from Jan. 21 to Feb. 12, and will be co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
Some teams will be experiencing their first participation at the competition, while others will be aiming to write their names in the record books as Africa’s best when the final takes place at the Stade d’Angondje in Libreville on Feb. 12.

Goal.com introduces you to the 16 teams that will be taking part in this highly-anticipated competition. Here we profile the Chipolopolo of Zambia.
 
Best Performance:
Runners-up: 1974 & 1994
 
HOW THEY QUALIFIED FOR AFCON 2012
GROUP C WINNER
Zambia left qualification until the final round of matches and played out a goalless draw with Libya which saw it finish as group winners with 13 points.

Chipolopolo started its campaign well, thrashing Comoros 4-0 in Lusaka and also giving Mozambique a 3-0 hiding which it followed up with a 2-0 win in the return fixture.
 
HERVE RENARD (Coach)
 Renard has been reappointed as the new Chipolopolo coach, replacing the Italian trainer Dario Bonetti who was recently sacked despite guiding Zambia to a berth in the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. The Frenchman was Zambia coach between May 2008 and February 2010 then quit his position for a lucrative deal with the Palancas Negras of Angola.

CHRISTOPHER KATONGO (Team captain)
 The 29-year-old striker is currently playing for Chinese club Henan Construction. He has played in Germany for Arminia Bielefeld as well as the South African PSL side Jomo Cosmos. He is famous for scoring a quick fire hat trick against South Africa in 2007, which earned him a promotion from a corporal to a sergeant in the Zambian Army.

KENNEDY MWEENE (Star Player)
 Mweene is one of the best goalkeepers in the South African PSL, where he plays for Free State Stars. The 2009-10 Premier Soccer League Goalkeeper of the Year is currently the captain of Stars and has also on several occasions skippered the national team. He is not just a safe pair of hands, but is also able to take penalties for his side.

EMMANUEL MAYUKA (Young Talent)
 The 21-year-old striker was the youngest player at both the 2007 Under-20 World Cup and the Ghana 2008 Africa Cup of Nations. After the Afcon tournament he was snapped up by Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv and he now plays for Swiss side Young Boys, who signed him as replacement for Seydou Doumbia. He has an eye for goal and impressive athletic ability.

 PROBABLE STARTING XI

 The Chipolopolo has always been a quick attacking team making use of a big forward, in this case Jacob Mulenga, who holds the ball to bring his supporting partner, Chris Katongo, and midfielders into play. Their signature attacking move is playing the ball wide to Fwayo Tembo and Jonas Sakuwaha to cross for Mulenga who is very strong in the air.

Coach: Mohammed ‘Mazda’ Abdallah
Sudan will be making their eighth appearance at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, seeking to improve their performance from the last time they played in the continent’s flagship tournament.

Their reappearance at the 2008 finals in Ghana was a welcome sight following 32 years in the wilderness but they failed to make an impact in the competition.

They were eliminated in the first round having lost all their matches without scoring a goal.
They return to the tournament with a bigger determination to succeed as coach Abdalllah Mazda has hinted that he will boost the squad with the inclusion of younger players.

With an average age of 28 most of the players in the Sudan squad have been playing together for more than eight years now.

But their lack of experience at the highest level of world football means they must find fresh legs to take them to the second round of the tournament.

As such the local coach will cast his net beyond the two biggest clubs in the country Al Hilal and Al Merreikh who have provided most of the players for the national team.

The Al Hilal quartet of goalkeeper Moez Mahjoub, midfielders Muhannad Taher Bashh and Khalif as well as  striker Careca will be key at the tournament in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea given their recent performances for both club and country.

But coach Mazda must try toget some of the players from the smaller clubs who have provided most of the players for the country’s U23 squad that beat Ghana in the 2012 Olympic Games qualifiers.

While their performance in Kumasi showed that they were ready to take on some of the continent’s best players their 2-0 home defeat to the Black Stars shows that they are not ready to win the title.

The Nile Crocodiles showed promise in the qualifiers after getting victories over Swaziland and Congo in both legs of the two matches and impressively held Ghana in Kumasi.

But the possibility of them capitulating when it matters struck as they lost 2-0 to the Black Stars who consequently took Group I’s automatic ticket to the Africa Cup of Nations.

 Sudan qualified after taking the remaining best-placed runners-up spot, for their performance finishing behind Ghana in Group I of the qualifiers.

Group D runners-up Central Africa Republic did not have enough points to overtake Sudan.


MALI
They are called the Eagles (les Aigles in French). They are led by the experience of ex-Olympic Lyonnais and Real Madrid star Mahamadou Diarra and their coach is former Toulouse, PSG and Gabon manager Alain Giresse.
The Eagles are 67th in the world and 15th in Africa. What should the Malians expect of their 2012 Africa Cup of Nations campaign?

Mali and the 1972 memory
Mali’s first go at the Nations Cup was a great experience. It actually remains their best up to date. Cameroon 1972 provided the Malian national team and supporters with sweetness and bitterness. The Eagles qualified for the competition after playing a couple of two-legged ties. They first defeated Niger 4-1 on aggregate and later overcame Guinea in the second round to reach Cameroon.

In Yaoundé, they had to face Kenya, Togo and hosts Cameroon in Group A. In their first ever AFCON fixture, Mali threw away a 3-1 lead to draw 3-3 as Togolese player Kaolo netted a hat-trick. The Eagles once again failed to hold on to a win.

This time, Kenya’s second half comeback denied Mali’s F. Keita from offering victory to his nation. Mali were fortunate to head out of the table after drawing one more time on Matchday 3 against Cameroon.

In the semifinals, the Malians needed extra time football to overcome Zaire 4-3. But the Eagles’ failure to triumph in normal time at the tournament became an agonizing torment when Congo-Brazzaville triumphed 3-2 in the final.

Mali had to settle for runners-up medals. Twenty-two years later, the Malian national team made its second African Cup of Nations appearance. They made history by winning their first group stage match thanks to a 2-0 win over hosts Tunisia.

They stunned Egypt in the quarterfinals but fell emphatically to Zambia in the semifinals. Distracted by the disappointment of missing out on the grand finale, the Malians succumbed to a 3-1 loss in the third place playoff against Cote d’Ivoire.

As the hosts in 2002, Mali suffered heartbreak as Cameroon defeated them in the semis en route to the title.
The Malians finished fourth at the expense of bronze medalists Nigeria. They got the same result at the 2004 AFCON in Tunisia. After exiting the tournament at the earliest stage in 2008 and 2010, what should the public expect from the Eagles?

Mali at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations

The Malians will kick off their 2012 Africa Cup of Nations campaign in Franceville with a late game against Guinea. They’ll face Ghana on Matchday 2 before closing their group stage run against Botswana. There will be no easy encounter for the Eagles. Mali’s 2012 AFCON squad goes as follows:

Goalkeepers: Soumbeyla Diakite, Oumar Sissoko, Alimamy Sogoba

Defenders: Idrissa Coulibaly, Ousmane Coulibaly, Drissa Diakite, Mohamed Fofana, Cedric Kante, Abdoulaye Maiga, Mouhamadou Ndiaye, Adama Tamboura

Midfielders: Samba Diakite, Seydou Keita, Sidi Kone, Samba Sow, Abdou Traore, Bakaye Traore, Kalilou Traore, Mahamane Traore

Forwards: Garra Dembele, Cheick Tidiane Diabate, Modibo Maiga, Mustapha Yatabare

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