Mali and Guinea will discover which of them will get the luck of the draw and become the final quarterfinalists at the African Nations Cup in Equatorial Guinea on Thursday.
Group D saw Ivory Coast finish top by beating Cameroon 1-0 on Wednesday, but Mali and Guinea drew 1-1 yet again, meaning they cannot be separated in the standings.
Instead, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) will put the names of the two teams into balls on Thursday at 4 p.m. (10 a.m. ET) at a hotel in Malabo and an official will pick one of them. Whichever one is chosen will advance to knockout phase of the tournament.
#AFCON2015: Drawing of lots (Article 74 AFCON Regulations) to determine qualifier between Mali & Guinea set for Hilton Malabo at 16:00 29Jan
- CAF MEDIA (@CAF_Media) January 28, 2015
"It's hard for each team because nobody deserves to be out of the competition," Guinea coach Michel Dussuyer said. "But now it is a reality we have to face.
"Mali didn't lose a game -- they played very well in the tournament. I would be disappointed, but it's hard for any team. No one deserves to be eliminated."
There had been a possibility that all four teams would be in the draw, but Ivory Coast managed to hold on for victory in Malabo -- the only result in the group that did not finish 1-1.
In Mongomo, Guinea took the lead when Kevin Constant converted a 15th-minute penalty. Mali had a chance to equalise two minutes later but captain Seydou Keita had a penalty saved at the other end.
The equaliser eventually came in the second half through forward Modibo Maiga's back-post header.
But since Mali and Guinea could not be separated on the field, they will be separated by luck.
"They are the regulations of the competition and we have to go by them," Mali coach Henryk Kasperczak said. "But it doesn't work well. They (CAF) need to look at it again."
Max Gradel scored the only goal of the match at Malabo Stadium after collecting a pass from Siaka Tiene that went through the legs of Cameroon forward Edgar Salli. He then ran toward the middle of the field before unleashing a hard shot that flew past a diving Fabrice Ondoa.
The result gives the Ivorians first place in the group and a quarterfinal match against Algeria on Sunday in Malabo. In Sunday's early match at the same venue, the lucky team from Thursday's draw will face Ghana.