CHAN 2016: Updated Quarter-Final Fixtures, Schedule and Predictions

Zambia and Mali were the last two sides to book their places in the quarter-finals of the 2016 African Nations Championship, after they played out a 0-0 draw on Wednesday.

Mali will now take on in-form Tunisia—who won their final group game against Niger 5-0—in the last eight, while Zambia face Nigeria's vanquishers, Guinea.

The first quarter-final on Saturday is a box-office clash between hosts Rwanda and DR Congo, before Cote d'Ivoire take on Cameroon.

Read on for full scheduling details for the last-eight clashes, along with predictions.

Date	Time (GMT / ET)	Team	vs.	Team	Prediction
Saturday, Jan. 30	1 p.m. / 8 a.m.	Rwanda	vs.	DR Congo	2-1
Saturday, Jan. 30	4 p.m. / 11 a.m.	Cameroon	vs.	Ivory Coast	2-3
Sunday, Jan. 31	1 p.m. / 8 a.m.	Tunisia	vs.	Mali	3-1
Sunday, Jan. 31	4 p.m. / 11 a.m.	Zambia	vs.	Guinea	0-1

Quarter-Final Preview

Rwanda go into their clash with DR Congo on the back of a 4-1 defeat to Morocco in their final group game.

However, eight changes had been made to the side that beat Gabon and Cote d'Ivoire, and coach Johnny McKinstry said his side will improve for the quarter-final, per Peter Kamasa for allAfrica.com:

"

Losing to Morocco was a big lesson for us, we are going to prepare the same way we have done for all the matches, and the quarter-final will be tougher. We rested some players with the quarter-final in mind, so we need to take lessons from this loss and try to put on a better performance against whichever team we will meet.

"

They will have to be much better, as the Leopards have looked in good form, convincingly beating Ethiopia and Angola in their group clashes, before losing to Cameroon having already guaranteed qualification.

Per another Kamasa piece for allAfrica.com, Rwanda have prevailed the last two times these sides have met, which should give them great confidence going into the match. As will the backing of the home crowd at the Amahoro National Stadium, but it is set to be a tough encounter against the 2009 CHAN winners.

Tunisia are arguably the side in the best form going into the quarter-finals. They started off the tournament slowly, with back-to-back draws against Nigeria and Guinea, but the drubbing of Niger will have given them a huge boost.

In Ahmed Akaichi, they have one of the most devastating strikers in the tournament, and he is on an impressive scoring run at the moment, per CAF:

Mali have looked less convincing. Like Tunisia, they won one and drew two in their group. But the victory was an edgy 1-0 against Zimbabwe and they will have to be on top form to have a chance against the Carthage Eagles.

Cameroon's clash with Cote d'Ivoire is a very tough clash to call. The Elephants have grown into the tournament, following a 1-0 loss to the hosts in the opening match with a 1-0 defeat of Morocco and a 4-1 thrashing of Gabon.

However, Cameroon have also been in decent form and are unbeaten following a group campaign that saw them draw with Ethiopia, but beat Angola and DR Congo.

It should be a fascinating match as there is decent attacking power on both sides, but Cote d'Ivoire may just edge it, as they have looked better and better as the tournament has progressed.

Finally, low-scoring Zambia need to make sure their defence is tight against Guinea or else they could be staring defeat in the face on Sunday.

They have netted only two goals in the tournament so far—compared to Guinea's five—and if they are going to have any chance of snatching another 1-0 win, they will need to be very well organised at the back.