Ivory Coast and Somalia went into the break level at 0–0 after a first half completely controlled by the Elephants, though the visitors were unable to convert their overwhelming possession into a lead.
Ivory Coast dominated the opening period, commanding 69% of ball possession to Somalia’s 31%. The Ivorians mounted steady pressure on the Somali defense, unleashing nine total shots during the half, testing the keeper with two on target while six went wide and one was blocked. They also won three corner kicks, maintaining near-constant territory in the opposition half.
Somalia spent the majority of the half pinned back, managing just a single shot attempt which was blocked by the Ivorian defense. Their defensive workload began to take a physical toll late in the half, leading to a yellow card for S. Hassan following a foul in the 44th minute.
Ivory Coast nearly broke the deadlock right before the whistle, as Nicolas Pépé missed a clear goalscoring opportunity in the 45th minute to sum up a wasteful half for the visitors.
Despite the tactical mismatch, Somalia head to the dressing rooms on equal footing, while Ivory Coast will need greater clinical edge in the second half to turn their dominance into three points.
