The Elephants trailed 2-0 by the 21st minute, but Jean-Philippe Krasso pulled one back just before the break by tapping in Wilfried Zaha's square ball. The Ivorians rarely threatened in the second half until Aston Villa forward Evann Guessand headed in a corner to equalise with six minutes remaining and set up a frantic finale. Bazoumana Toure then completed the turnaround in the first of five added minutes, with the wideman's diving header from Christopher Operi's left-wing cross sparking wild celebrations. Yan Diomande thought he had made it 4-2 from a late counter-attack, but the goal was ruled out for offside earlier in the move after a check by the video assistant referee (VAR). With the Elephants drawing until late on, Cameroon had been set to top the group by two points courtesy of their 2-1 win over Mozambique. Ivory Coast will now face Burkina Faso in the last 16 in Marrakesh on Tuesday, 6 January (19:00 GMT), with the victory sparing them a more challenging route to the final.

Cameroon now face a tough task against South Africa in the last 16 and also find themselves in what looks to be the harder side of the draw, after holders Ivory Coast scored a 91st-minute winner in their 3-2 win over Gabon to pip the Indomitable Lions to top spot in Group F on goals scored. Mozambique, who are 102nd in Fifa's rankings and beat Gabon by the same scoreline for their first-ever win at an Afcon finals, were briefly on course to win the group and would have claimed second spot had they held on to the lead they earned through Geny Catamo's sublime 23rd-minute opener in Agadir. Nene's own goal drew Cameroon level five minutes later, with 19-year-old Kofane producing the second memorable strike of the night 10 minutes after half-time. The five-time champions will travel to Rabat to face South Africa on Sunday (19:00 GMT) and could then potentially meet Nigeria in the quarter-finals followed by host nation and tournament favourites Morocco in the semis. One of the four best third-placed teams from the six groups, Mozambique's maiden appearance in the second round will start against the Super Eagles in Fes on Monday (19:00 GMT).

Leaving out five-time Premier League winner Mahrez was one of nine changes made by Algeria coach Vladimir Petkovic from the 1-0 victory over Burkina Faso, but his livewire replacement on the right flank, Anis Hadj Moussa, ran the Equatoguineans ragged. His trickery and direct approach drew rapturous approval from the thousands of Algeria fans in green and white who packed all four sides of this compact, modern stadium. Moussa's corner supplied centre-back Zineddine Belaid to nod in the opener before another cross from the Feyenoord man found the unmarked Ibrahim Maza ghosting into space to head his side's third. In between, Moussa's team-mate on the opposite flank, Fares Chaibi, also exploited time and space behind a porous backline to fire high into the net after cutting inside. Having lost their opening two games in Group E, the attitude and endeavour on display from Equatorial Guinea was not up to the required standard, particularly in the first half. Captain and frontman Emilio Nsue was regularly forced to drop deep to gesticulate for his players to up their intensity, and the 36-year-old put all of his evident frustration into a powerful long-range strike which found the top corner in the 50th minute, providing the one moment of real quality from the National Thunder. Petkovic, meanwhile, looks to have moulded a hardworking, slick unit, with squad players fighting to make an impression ahead of Les Fennecs' last-16 tie against DR Congo back at this stadium on Tuesday, 6 January (16:00 GMT).

Both sides were assured of progress behind table-topping Algeria before kick-off in Casablanca and the respective coaches rotated their sides ahead of the knockout stage. Lassina Traore was left unmarked six yards out to head in Stephane Aziz Ki's chipped ball across the box to open the scoring for the Stallions in the 16th minute. Al Gozoli Nooh missed the chance to equalise from the penalty spot midway through the first half after being brought down by Burkina Faso goalkeeper Herve Koffi. Left-back Arsene Kouassi added a second for the West Africans with five minutes remaining, slotting Dango Ouattara's through ball just inside the left-hand post. Sudan will travel north to Tangier to take on 2021 winners Senegal on Saturday, 3 January (16:00 GMT). Meanwhile, Burkina Faso have set up a tie against holders Ivory Coast, who won Group F in dramatic fashion later on Wednesday, in Marrakesh on Tuesday, 6 January (19:00 GMT).

Centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes, making his first start since recovering from injury in November, bundled the ball in from a trademark corner in the 48th minute to give Arsenal the lead, and despite appeals from the Villa players for a foul on their goalkeeper Emi Martinez, the goal stood. The Gunners then doubled their lead when captain Martin Odegaard won the ball back in midfield before playing an excellent pass to Martin Zubimendi who poked the ball past Martinez. Leandro Trossard added a third when he slammed a shot low into the net from the edge of the area, after a lengthy check for offside by the video assistant referee (VAR). And substitute Gabriel Jesus ensured it was a memorable night for the Gunners when he curled in from the edge of the area before Ollie Watkins tapped in from close range in stoppage time to give Aston Villa a consolation goal. Villa came into this game on an 11-match winning streak which included a 2-1 victory over the Gunners 24 days ago, but despite starting the game well and going close through Ollie Watkins could not find a way to go ahead. Unai Emery's side, who were without Matty Cash and Boubacar Kamara through suspension, came with a clear gameplan to slow the tempo of the match down and tried to frustrate Arsenal, but could not deny Mikel Arteta's side an impressive win. The victory ends an excellent year for the Gunners who have lost just twice in the league this season, and move five points clear before second-placed Manchester City's match at Sunderland on New Year's Day (20:00 GMT).