After many failures to achieve anything of note in African football, Angola burst onto the scene when qualifying for the 2006 World Cup - appearing at the finals just four years after the end of a three-decade civil war. Despite a creditable performance in Germany, it would be another two years before the Palancas Negras made it out of the group stages at the Nations Cup, which they achieved at Ghana 2008.
While all eyes were on the World Cup in South Africa in July 2010, a funny thing happened at the other end of the continent. For a team that had totalled just eight Nations cup qualifying wins in history won 1-0 in Tunisia to start a run of five victories from their opening six games. This remarkable form qualified the Zebras for their first ever finals but the mood within the squad has significantly dampened since.
Burkina Faso's Nations Cup place was only confirmed on 10 January, when the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected Namibia's claim that the Stallions should be expelled after fielding an ineligible player in qualifying. Namibia believed that Cameroon-born Herve Zengue failed to fulfil Fifa's criteria to play for an adopted nation but despite the CAS ruling, the left back has not made the Burkinabe squad.
The Ivorians arrive at the Nations Cup as favourites for the event - but it's a tag they have carried badly in the past few years. For every Nations Cup since they returned to the competition in 2006, football writers have praised the quality of a squad comprising Didier Drogba, the Toure brothers, Didier Zokora and Emmanuel Eboue etc. - one that has been good enough to reach the first two World Cups in the country's history.
Gabon will enter the most important competition in its football history on a high after the country won its first African title last month. The Under-23 side won the Confederation of African Football's inaugural continental championship, qualifying for London 2012 - Gabon's first Olympic football tournament - at the same time. Four of the side have made coach Gernot Rohr's senior squad for the Nations Cup, with captain Cedric Boussoughou joined by Remy Ebanega, Henri Ndong and Andre Biyogo Poko.
There will surely never be a better time for Ghana to end a 30-year Nations Cup drought than at a finals for which traditional powerhouses Egypt (who have won the last three tournaments), Cameroon and Nigeria have all failed to qualify. Since their last triumph in 1982, the Black Stars - whose four Nations Cups are only bettered by Egypt's seven - have at least proven their pedigree on the global stage, coming closer than any other African team to reaching the World Cup semi-finals at the 2010 edition in South Africa.
Guinea return to the Nations Cup after missing out on the 2010 finals, an unexpected failure since they had reached the quarter-finals at the three preceding tournaments. The first of these had come under current coach Michel Dussuyer, who reached the last eight in 2004 during his first spell in charge before losing to Mali.
Against a backdrop of civil war, Libya's footballers achieved the most stunning qualification for the Nations Cup - as they overcame considerable odds to qualify for only the second finals in their history (the first of their three appearances came when hosting the competition in 1982). They hurdled the challenges of Ramadan affecting their opening game.
After an incredible record at their first four Nations Cups - when they reached the semi-finals on every occasion - Mali's recent displays have been poor. In both 2008 and 2010, the team failed to reach the knock-out stages - although the Eagles counted themselves unfortunate to miss out in Angola as the hosts and Algeria played out a lacklustre draw (which prompted an official Mali protest).
Since contesting - and losing - the 2004 final to then host nation Tunisia, Morocco's Nations Cup record has been one of major disappointment - suffering group stage exits in both 2006 and 2008, before failing to qualify for the 2010 finals altogether. But like the Senegalese, the Atlas Lions have used their period in the international wilderness to come back as a far stronger unit.
Niger were THE shock qualifiers for this Nations Cup because few people, if any, expected them to finish above defending champions Egypt, 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa or Sierra Leone in their group. Despite losing all their matches away from the blistering heat of their home stadium in Niamey, the Mena qualified for their maiden Nations Cup thanks to a 100% home record (and Bafana Bafana's embarrassing inability to understand the rules).
Senegal head the group of outsiders to win this Nations Cup and this is more than understandable given the talent available to coach Amara Traore, a former international. Traore, an unused squad member during the 2002 World Cup, has a plethora of riches in attack where he can call upon Premier League hotshot Demba Ba, new Newcastle United signing Papiss Demba Cisse as well as Lille's Moussa Sow and former Marseille star Mamadou Niang.
Sudan coach Mohamed 'Mazda' Abdallah believes his side are better prepared for the 2012 finals than they were for their Nations Cup return four years ago, the second weakest team at the finals for Fifa, will hope he is right. The fact that the Sudanese had returned to the tournament for the first time since 1976 seemed to be the sole positive from Ghana 2008, where the team failed to score while conceding nine goals in three defeats.
With a minute left of African qualifying for the 2012 finals, Tunisia were facing an embarrassing exit from the competition - but they were reprieved when Chad scored the latest of equalisers to deny Malawi a place in the finals. While it may not have been wholly convincing, the qualification represented a personal triumph for coach Sami Trabelsi who had taken charge in January 2011 with the team in dire straits and trailing the Malawians by two points.
The National Syli or Guinea has become a must-selection in recent years with CAN in nine appearances including a finals place finish in 1976. In the CAN 2004, the selection is out in the quarterfinals by Mali (2-1), same thing in 2006 against Senegal (3-2) and 208 against the Ivory Coast (5-0).
The Zambian FA (Faz) had a strange reaction to qualifying for the Nations Cup when electing to sack coach Dario Bonetti less than 48 hours after reaching this month's finals. Former African Footballer of the Year Kalusha Bwalya, now the Faz president, claimed the Italian was not up to the job.

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