Who: Senegal vs Sudan
What: CAF Africa Cup of Nations
Where: Ibn Batouta Stadium in Tangier
When: Saturday, January 3, 5pm (16:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 13:00 GMT in advance of our text commentary stream.

The AFCON round of 16 begins with a clash between the heavyweights and minnows, as title favourites Senegal face Sudan, the lowest-ranked side remaining in the competition.

Boasting considerable attacking firepower in Nicolas Jackson and Sadio Mane, Senegal stormed their way into the knockouts, affirming their place among the title favourites as the AFCON 2021 champions seek their second title.

The 117th-ranked Sudan, on the other hand, needed a helping hand to qualify and will play in the knockout stages for the first time in 14 years. Reaching the round of 16 represents a significant achievement for Sudan, whose footballing progress has defied ongoing turmoil at home.

Here’s everything you need to know about Senegal vs Sudan:

What’s going on in Sudan?

Sudan has been ravaged by war since fighting broke out between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in April 2023.

The conflict has killed tens of thousands, displaced more than 12 million people and triggered famine in several parts of Sudan, a situation the United Nations has described as the “world’s worst humanitarian crisis”.

Sudan’s goalkeeper, Mohamed Abooja, had to deal with the anguish of his brother being taken prisoner by the RSF. “Of course, the team has been impacted. Everyone has just tried to get through this period, but it has been difficult with the tension all over Sudan,” Abooja told AFP news agency.

“In the end, our results on the pitch are what make the people happy and boost their morale.”

How did Sudan reach the 2025 AFCON round of 16?

Sudan’s team progressed to the last 16 as one of the four best third-placed teams, collecting three points in Group E courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Equatorial Guinea: a result that marked only their second-ever win at the tournament since lifting the trophy in 1970.

That historic victory was aided by a moment of good fortune, with an own goal from Equatorial Guinea’s Saul Coco proving decisive.

How did Senegal reach the round of 16?

Senegal, Africa’s second-highest-ranked nation at 19th in the world, finished top of Group D with seven points after two wins and a draw, edging DR Congo on goal difference.

They finished the group stage with the joint-second highest goal tally (seven, alongside Algeria), just one behind Nigeria.

Who will the winner face in the next round?

The winner of the Senegal and Sudan match will stay in Tangier to face the winner of the Mali and Tunisia match in the quarterfinals on January 9.

Who are Senegal’s best players?

Striker Nicolas Jackson made an impressive start with two goals in the opening match against Botswana, while Cherif Ndiaye also has two goals to his name – both scored after coming on as a substitute.

The experienced winger Sadio Mane is another star player of Senegal, alongside midfielders Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gana Gueye.

Mane has been involved in 17 AFCON goals (10 goals, 7 assists), the most by any player since 2010.

Who are Sudan’s best players?

Midfielders Walieldin Khidir and Ammar Toaifour, along with defender Sheddy Barglan, have been Sudan’s standout performers at the tournament.

Senegal and Sudan form guides

All matches, most recent result last:

Senegal: W-D-W-W-L

Sudan: L-W-L-L-L

• Senegal are on a 14-match unbeaten run at AFCON (W9 D5).
• Senegal have kept 17 clean sheets at AFCON since 2017, more than any other team.
• Sudan have conceded six goals, the most of any team to reach the round of 16.
• Sudan won just one of their last seven AFCON matches (D1 L5).

Head-to-head

Senegal and Sudan have met in seven previous encounters, across competitive and friendly games.

Senegal boast an unbeaten record, having won four times and drawn three times.

When did Senegal and Sudan last meet?

The teams recently met in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in September when Senegal won 2-0.

Senegal vs Sudan – stat attack

Saturday’s game will be their first meeting at AFCON and fifth overall in a span of a year.

Senegal have never lost to an East African opponent at AFCON, having played five matches, winning four and drawing one.

Have Senegal ever won an AFCON title?

This is Senegal’s 18th appearance at the AFCON finals, with their best result being the 2021 title they won in Cameroon. They have also finished runners-up twice: in 2002 and 2019.

Have Sudan ever won an AFCON title?

Sudan are making their 10th appearance this year. Since their debut in 1957, they have finished runners-up twice – in 1959 and 1963 – and won their only trophy in 1970.

Senegal team news

Senegal coach Pape Thiaw will be without his captain, Kalidou Koulibaly, who is suspended for this match, having picked up a red card in their final group game.

Senegal’s predicted lineup

Edouard Mendy; Krepin Diatta, Abdoulaye Seck, Moussa Niakhate, Ismail Jakobs; Idrissa Gana Gueye, Pape Gueye; Ismaila Sarr, Iliman Ndiaye, Sadio Mane; Nicolas Jackson

Sudan team news

Sudan coach Kwesi Appiah will be without midfielders Salah Adil, Abo Eisa and Abuaagla Abdalla, who are injured.

Sudan’s predicted lineup

Monged El Neel; Sheddy Barglan, Mohamed Ereng, Mustafa Karshom, Bakhit Khamis; Walieldin Khidir, Abdelrazig Omer, Ammar Taifour; Aamir Abdallah, Mohammed Abdel-Rahman, Mohamed Eisa

US President Donald Trump says he is in “perfect” health, takes more aspirin than doctors recommend, uses makeup to cover bruising on his hands, and does not get regular exercise because he finds it “boring”.

In a lengthy interview about his health, Trump also told The Wall Street Journal that he underwent a CT scan in October, after incorrectly telling reporters that he had undergone a more detailed MRI scan.

Trump, 79, is the oldest president inaugurated in US history and his ageing has come under increased scrutiny.

He denied to the Journal that he has struggled to hear or that he has fallen asleep at recent White House events.

The newspaper said Trump “expressed irritation about the public debate over his health”.

“Let’s talk about health again for the 25th time,” the president said at the start of an “impromptu phone call” as the newspaper prepared to publish a story about his health.

Trump said he had been taking larger than recommended doses of aspirin for the last 25 years, even as he said it caused him to bruise easily.

“They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,” Trump said.

He takes 325mg of aspirin per day, rather than the 81mg dose sometimes recommended by doctors.

“They’d rather have me take the smaller one,” Trump said.

But he does not want to switch routines after so many years. “I’m a little superstitious,” he said.

According to guidance from the Mayo Clinic, the risk of heart attack and stroke goes up as you get older and low-dose aspirin helps to prevent both by thinning the blood and preventing clots. But the clinic warns that the risk of bleeding from aspirin also goes up with age. It says the daily dose for aspirin therapy is between 75mg and 325mg.

The president also talked about the medical scan he received at Walter Reed National Medical Center, which he previously said was an MRI scan.

“It wasn’t an MRI,” Trump told the Journal. “It was less than that. It was a scan.”

A doctor for Trump, Navy Capt Sean Barbabella, said in a statement provided to the Journal that Trump had undergone a CT scan, “to definitively rule out any cardiovascular issues” and that the testing revealed no abnormalities.

After Trump was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a common condition in older people, he was advised to wear compression socks but he declined.

“I didn’t like them,” Trump said, adding that he now gets up from his desk more regularly, which has improved swelling in his legs.

Still, the president said he preferred not to do any form of regular exercise, other than golfing.

“I just don’t like it. It’s boring,” Trump said. “To walk on a treadmill or run on a treadmill for hours and hours like some people do, that’s not for me.”

The president maintained that he had not nodded off during public meetings, saying he closed his eyes at times because he finds it “relaxing”. As for the bruising seen on his hands in some photos, Trump said he now carried makeup in case his hand got “whacked”.

“I have makeup that’s, you know, easy to put on, takes about 10 seconds,” he said.

Trump said he did not have trouble with his hearing, and when photographers have taken photos of him when he appears to be sleeping, he said “sometimes they’ll take a picture of me blinking”.

“And they’ll catch me with the blink.”

Barbabella said in the statement to the Journal that Trump was in “exceptional health and perfectly suited to execute his duties as Commander in Chief”.

Trump’s predecessor, Democratic President Joe Biden, dropped out of the 2024 election race after a stumbling debate with Trump raised questions about his age and mental sharpness.

Venezuela leader strikes conciliatory tone while renewing claim US wants to topple government to access vast oil reserves.

Venezuela is open to negotiating a deal with the United States to combat drug trafficking, President Nicolas Maduro has said, even as he remained silent on a reported CIA-led strike on his country last week.

The latest statement, made during an interview that aired on Thursday, comes as Maduro has struck a more conciliatory tone towards the US amid Washington’s months-long sanctions and military pressure campaign.

That included, on Thursday, the release of more than 80 prisoners accused of protesting his disputed victory in the 2024 election, the second such release in recent days.

“Wherever they want and whenever they want,” Maduro told Spanish journalist Ignacio Ramonet of the idea of dialogue with the US on drug trafficking, oil and migration in an interview on state TV.

He stressed that it is time for both nations to “start talking seriously, with data in hand”.

“The US government knows, because we’ve told many of their spokespeople, that if they want to seriously discuss an agreement to combat drug trafficking, we’re ready,” he said.

Still, Maduro renewed his allegations that the US is trying to topple his government and gain access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves through Washington’s months-long sanctions and military pressure campaign.

“If they want oil, Venezuela is ready for US investment, like with Chevron,” he added, referring to the US oil giant, which is the only major oil company exporting Venezuelan crude to the US.

Asked point-blank by Ramonet if he confirmed or denied a US attack on Venezuelan soil, Maduro said: “This could be something we talk about in a few days.”

To date, Maduro has not confirmed a US land attack on a docking facility that allegedly targeted drug boats.

For months, the US has launched numerous strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats originating from Venezuela, in what rights groups have decried as extrajudicial killings. The Trump administration has also imposed a blockade on sanctioned oil tankers entering and exiting Venezuela’s coast.

Tensions further escalated after Trump revealed earlier this week a strike on a docking area for alleged Venezuelan drug boats, in the first known attack on Venezuelan territory of the US campaign.

Trump has not confirmed widespread reports in US media that the attack was a CIA operation or where it occurred, saying only it was “along the shore”.

“There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs,” he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

“So we hit all the boats and now we hit the area, it’s the implementation area, that’s where they implement. And that is no longer around.”

The US president has repeatedly threatened ground strikes on drug cartels in the region, which he has labelled “narcoterrorists”. He has claimed, without providing evidence, that Maduro leads a trafficking organisation that aims to destabilise the US by flooding it with drugs.

However, regional experts have noted that Venezuela is not known to be involved in the illicit fentanyl trade, which far and away accounts for the highest number of overdose deaths in the US. Trump has labelled the drug a “weapon of mass destruction”.

Maduro has said the Trump administration’s approach makes it “clear” that the US “seek to impose themselves” on Venezuela through “threats, intimidation and force”.

Maduro’s interview was taped on New Year’s Eve, the same day the US military struck five alleged drug-smuggling boats, killing at least five people.

The latest attacks bring the total number of known boat strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific to 35 and the number of people killed to at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.

Venezuelans and Colombians have been among the victims.