ASEC Mimosas vs ASI d'Abengourou Prediction: Title defense begins for the host

The first game of the league season between ASEC Mimosas and ASI d'Abengourou will take place at Stade Félix Houphouet Boigny. The side that will be playing at home is the favorite, while ASI d'Abengourou, the visitors, are the heavy underdog.

The ASEC Mimosas are the defending champions, and they will be hoping to get their new season off to a winning start in this match. ASEC Mimosas were victorious in the Ivory Coast Ligue 1 competition the year before, accumulating 63 points over the course of 30 games and finishing 9 points ahead of their closest challenger, SO Armee. ASEC Mimosas are coming into this match having not lost any of their previous five matches, and they just recently qualified for the main tournament of the CAF Champions League by winning their most recent encounter against Al Ahly Benghazi.

ASI d'Abengourou are coming into this match as massive underdogs, so they will need to be at the top of their game in order to have any chance of winning. ASI d'Abengourou concluded the previous season in the Ivory Coast Ligue 1 with a total of 29 points, which placed them in the 14th rank in the league. The fact that they were only one point ahead of the team that was relegated, ES Bafing, was a big stroke of luck for them. ASI d'Abengourou entered the current season with a record of two wins, two losses, and one draw in their previous five matches.

Three of the most recent five matches between these two teams were won by ASEC Mimosas, while ASI d'Abengourou only took home one victory. In the meantime, one of the matches ended in a draw with a score of 1-1. ASEC Mimosas scored five goals in those matches, while ASI d'Abengourou scored three goals.

The way the bookies are setting the odds suggests that this match will be significantly more difficult than it appears to be on paper. In spite of this, I believe that the host should still be able to maneuver themselves and gain a win that they have earned here on their home turf after looking at their respective performances. In addition to that, when you look at their recent matchups, you'll notice that it's rather typical for one team to go the entire game without scoring, and I anticipate that trend to continue here.