Senegal v Sudan, Sat 4pm (all times GMT)

Senegal, winners of the Afcon in 2022, have arguably the best collection of players, including the experience of Sadio Mané and the explosive talent of Nicolas Jackson, and are superior to their east African opponents. But Sudan, who qualified for the tournament despite the tragedy of a horrendous war in their country, certainly match the Lions of Teranga in fortitude. Sudan, coached by the Ghanaian Kwesi Appiah, who led his home country at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, played all their qualifiers away from home, with the war, which began in April 2023, shutting down a thriving domestic league. The Sudan striker John Mano told the BBC of people back home: “Some of them cannot watch the matches … They can’t even listen on the radio … We are trying to free our country, through the football way.” A win for Sudan would be one of the fairytales of the tournament.

Mali v Tunisia, Sat 7pm

This is going to be one of the tastier games of the round, with Mali, coached by the Belgian Tom Saintfiet, having the depth of talent and presence of character to beat a Tunisian side who showed only glimpses of their potential in a dramatic 3-2 group defeat by Nigeria. Mali’s free-flowing football, attractive to the eye, is an ever-present danger to their opponents, and their players include Tottenham’s Yves Bissouma and the Auxerre striker Lassine Sinayoko, who leads the forward line. Tunisia, led by their 1998 World Cup player Sami Trabelsi, are yet to display the form that enabled them to qualify with relative ease for this summer’s World Cup. If they can rediscover their mojo, they could be a surprise team of the competition because they have the balance to thrive.

Morocco v Tanzania, Sun 4pm

There could not have been an easier game for the host nation at this stage after a testy middle group game against Mali, which rattled the nerves of their manager, Walid Regragui, and thousands of Moroccans. The firepower of Brahim Díaz, the return of Achraf Hakimi and the goal-poaching talent of Ayoub El Kaabi, who has scored arguably the best goal of the competition so far, mean the game should be little more than an enhanced practice session for the Atlas Lions. Tanzania, building a team for the 2027 Afcon they are co-staging with Kenya and Uganda, made history by qualifying for the knockout stage for the first time in their 45-year tournament history.

South Africa v Cameroon, Sun 7pm

Hugo Broos, the South Africa coach, led Cameroon to their last Afcon triumph, in Gabon in 2017, so the Belgian is acutely aware of what his team will be up against. “We must learn to have concentration,” Broos said after Bafana-Bafana’s unconvincing 3-2 win over Zimbabwe in their final group match. “We can’t play like that against them [Cameroon]. If we do that, we have no chance to win.” Cameroon have held their own at the tournament despite sacking their Belgian coach Marc Brys on 1 December and replacing him with the 56-year-old Cameroonian David Pagou. The most successful sub-Saharan team, five times African champions, have pedigree and are led by Manchester United’s Bryan Mbeumo. But South Africa’s football under Broos, who leaves the job after the World Cup, has been on the ascendant, making what should ordinarily be Cameroon’s game very close to call.

Egypt v Benin, Mon 4pm

For the Pharaohs, managed by the multiple Afcon winner Hossam Hassan and with players such as Omar Marmoush of Manchester City, Trézéguet and Mohamed Salah, this should be an easy day at the office. But it will be anything but that if Gernot Rohr, the manager of the first Benin side to qualify for the knockout stages, has anything to do with it. “This is going to be a big game, a fantastic game for our country,” Rohr told the Guardian. “Of course, we know the big players they have … We know that it will be difficult to beat them. But as outsiders, we will have our chance.”

Nigeria v Mozambique, Mon 7pm

Nigeria, three-time Afcon winners, earned their place in the last 16 in emphatic style, gaining maximum points against Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda. With Victor Osimhen of Galatasaray, Ademola Lookman of Atalanta and Samuel Chukwueze of Fulham forming arguably Africa’s best strike force, Mozambique are, on paper, no match for them. Mozambique lost to Cameroon and Ivory Coast and went through as the best third-placed team, courtesy of a 3-2 shock win over Gabon. Nigeria’s head coach, Éric Chelle, is wary, however. “The group stages have ended and another tournament starts,” he said. “We just have a few days to be ready. For sure, this game would be tough.”

Algeria v Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tues 4pm

This will be a battle of tactical minds: Vladimir Petkovic on the Algerian side and Sébastien Desabre on the Congolese side. Their ability to exploit the holes in their opponents, to pay attention to the small details in what is likely to be an extremely tight game, could prove decisive. Both teams, with talented players such as Riyad Mahrez and Fiston Mayele respectively, play with verve and daring adventure. Their passionate fans will also bring colour to what should be a spectacle.

Côte d’Ivoire v Burkina Faso, Tues 7pm

This game between neighbouring west African countries, whose people share language and cultural similarities, could go either way, even though Côte d’Ivoire are the defending champions and Burkina Faso had not made an Afcon finals in 12 years. The Côte d’Ivoire manager, Emerse Faé, has not retained the confidence of his compatriots since unexpectedly winning the tournament in Februay 2024 and is determined to prove that triumph was not the fluke most in the African football community believe it was. It took a near defeat against Gabon, in their final group game, to shake his players out of complacency. Burkina Faso have started strongly, a dramatic win over Equatorial Guinea and a victory against Sudan sandwiching the controversial loss to Algeria that put them second in their group. Brama Traoré, the head coach of the Stallions, will be relying on the defensive stalwart Edmund Tapsoba, of Bayer Leverkusen, and the attacking talent of Bertrand Traoré, Dango Ouattara and Pierre Landry Kaboré.