In today’s African Cup of Nations round of 16 tie, hosts Côte d’Ivoire will square off against reigning champion Senegal in a heavyweight match.
The Ivorians are excited to prove themselves against their highly-rated opponents on Monday (today) after a poor group stage performance.
“We are quite confident going into the match against Senegal because we trained hard for it. The players are driven,” according to Faye Emers, the coach of Côte d’Ivoire.
Having spent a year and a half with the group, I am well acquainted with them. In the Senegal encounter, the players are aware of what is expected of them. We’re going into the game with a lot of confidence,” he continued.
In the meantime, Senegal, led by manager Aliou Cisse, topped Group B without a loss. After three games, Cisse declared, “Our team is going through a good period where we achieved good results in the group stage, and I am satisfied with it.”
We are well-suited to concentrate. I am powerless to alter the past or the outcomes; the statistics are what they are. We’re here in the now, and we’re going to stay there,” he continued.
Following their recent losses, the Côte d’Ivoire Elephants wish to make apologies.
“Since I took over as head of the national team, we have collaborated effectively. Despite our poor performance during the group phase, Côte d’Ivoire will always be Côte d’Ivoire. Senegal will select a different team that finished in third place instead of Côte d’Ivoire if we ask them which team they would like to play in the round of sixteen,” Emers stated.
Jean-Michael Seri, an Ivorian midfielder, concurred, saying, “You want to win the continental title when you are competitive, especially when you host the competition.”
“Anything may happen in this competition. Now that the event is past, we must turn our attention to the future and the match against Senegal.”
“I don’t want to discuss what transpired. The knockout round of this tournament will feature a new competition, and we hope to advance under the direction of the new coach—who happens to be our big brother.”
The Senegalese Teranga Lions are wary of a driven rival on their home ground. “We performed admirably this week. Our attention needs to stay on how we play both defense and attack. The objective of the game is still to win, and we will stay focused on ourselves,” Senegal defender Moussa Nyakhate stated.
“We have a great deal of respect for the Côte d’Ivoire national team, and they have players with good potential,” he continued.
But he did observe that “the Senegalese team has a great atmosphere.” Everyone is in terrific health. The young players are being mentored by an amazing group of seasoned pros.
Both sides are aware of the significant risks. We are currently playing a strong Côte d’Ivoire team in the eighth final. It’s going to be an extremely tough match. Cisse played down his team’s advantage, saying, “If we win, we will continue the adventure, and if we lose, we will go home.”
“It doesn’t matter that we qualified with nine points and the opposition with three,” he continued. A fresh competition has just started. A significant team in Africa, Côte d’Ivoire boasts talented players.”
“They will put on another show for their supporters; the losses in their last two games were merely accidents.”
In this AFCON last-16 match, the Ivorians are looking to upset the reigning champions in order to secure a spot in the quarterfinals.
On Monday, January 29, at 9 p.m. (Nigerian time), Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire will play each other at Yamoussoukro’s Charles Konan Bani Stadium.