Cote d'Ivoire go into their first African Nations Cup without legend Didier Drogba in almost a decade as they seek to put behind them past disappointments and finally claim Africa's top prize.
Also missing is stalwart midfielder Dideir Zakora, another of the old 'Golden Generation' that has now retired without realising the huge potential of the group.
They begin their 2015 campaign under new coach Herve Renard with a tough meeting against Guinea in Malabo on Tuesday (kick-off 16h00 GMT) and in a pool that is likely to be hotly contested with Cameroon and Mali also in the mix. A good start is a must.
Drogba was the poster-boy for the side before his retirement at the end of the last World Cup in Brazil, but now there is the opportunity for someone else to step into those shoes.
Wilfred Bony may not have the same charisma as his former teammate, but is a skilled operator up front. In fact, no striker scored more goals in English Premiership than the Ivorian in 2014.
Key midfielder Yaya Toure is an injury doubt after he sat out training on Saturday and is being closely monitored by the Ivorian medical staff.
Renard has happy memories of Equatorial Guinea after leading unfancied Zambia to African glory at the 2012 finals that were co-hosted with Gabon.
Zambia played all their matches bar the final in Equatorial Guinea as Renard led them to a most unlikely win - ironically defeated Ivory Coast in the final in a marathon penalty shoot-out.
The French coach says he wants to see more cohesion from his side and not so much individuality.
"We are always one of the most fancied teams but a lot of things have changed from previous years," Renard told reporters. "The squad is a lot younger now and if you base it on our qualifying campaign I don't think we can be labelled one of the favourites.
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"When a team comes up against the Ivory Coast they know what that means - three consecutive World Cups, players who play for the very biggest clubs.
"But we need to find greater collective cohesion if we want to achieve anything."
Guinea have not had the greatest of build-ups to the competition but remain a side capable of springing a surprise on their day.
Led by French coach Michel Dussuyer, who also took the side to the 2012 finals where they excited in the first round, Guinea were thumped 5-2 by Senegal in a recent warm-up fixture.
They have included controversial midfielder Kévin Constant, who looked to have quit the national side back in October after severely criticizing the Guinea FA and admitting he did not get along with many of his teammates.
