In a thrilling 2-1 win over Nigeria on Sunday 11 February, Sebastian Haller became Ivory Coast’s hero with a superb late goal that secured the Africa Cup of Nations championship for the hosts. Haller won a third AFCON championship for Ivory Coast.
Ivory Coast VS Nigeria African Champions Final Review
In the Africa Cup of Nations final at the Ouattara Stadium in Alassane, Ivory Coast came from behind to defeat Nigeria.
With the goal chances and confidence they lacked in the rest of the competition, the hosts were the stronger, more attacking team from the off. Nigeria threatened to collapse, but the fans in the stadium made the game exciting and energetic.
They won a corner after a rare foray up the pitch and William Troost-Ekong headed into the net the opening goal to give them a half-time lead.
Ivory Coast refuses to back down. In the second half they came out firing and equalized with a well-executed set piece of their own. Frank Casey moves into the air and hits a header that hits the deck and then rebounds into the net. Maybe there was a sign of luck at the end of the game. To decide the match, Sebastian Haller—who had been injured earlier in the tournament—stuck his foot on a cross and headed past Stanley Nabali.
Ivory Coast VS Nigeria Best Player Of The Match
Despite a turbulent journey, Ivory Coast miraculously won a third Africa Cup of Nations title. The Ivorian side lost 4-0 to Equatorial Guinea and changed managerial personnel mid-tournament, assistant Emerse Fay, who replaced Jean-Louis Gasset, must be commended for showing tremendous spirit and dedication throughout the competition.
Their last 16 match was against Senegal, which they won on penalties. Ivory Coast fought hard in the quarters, earning a desperate equalizer against Mali but eventually winning the game in extra time.
However, they became their true selves in their final match against Nigeria. Sebastian Haller emerged as the hero, orchestrating a surprise turnaround as Ivory Coast came from behind to claim a 2-1 victory. Frank Casey’s effort canceled out William Trost-Ekong’s header in the first half and Olivier Giroud’s decisive volley nine minutes from the hour set the stage.
Buoyed by the enthusiastic support provided by the Abidjan fans, the home side played in the first half and created scoring opportunities mostly through Max Gradel and Simon Adingra.
At the end of the day, Ivory Coast’s resilience and unity have prevailed, and yet what happened continues to etch itself into the annals of African football history.
Who Is The Coach Of Ivory Coast And His Coaching Coach
Ivorian national coach Fay, as of February 9, 2024, Emerse. Obviously, in national teams, there is no such conventional job as “coaching coach”. Generally, the head coach is assisted by a staff including technical advisors and assistants, but they would not be classified as “coaching coaches”. In the traditional sense.
After a brief coaching career, Fay had a successful career as a professional soccer player, representing various teams in France and England; Likewise, he has represented the Ivory Coast national team in international tournaments.
Faé’s coaching path began with various assistant coaching roles with several teams in France and progressed to the next level from there. In January 2024, he was appointed head coach of the Ivory Coast national team, the highest point of his coaching career.
He took office as head coach early in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations tournament, for which he was already head coach at Familla, after the sacking of Jean-Louis Gasset. Remarkably, in the face of formidable odds, Faé showed his proven leadership and tactical acumen, engineering an incredible turnaround that saw them finish as runners-up in the prestigious championship.
Although Faé certainly benefits from the support and advice of other coaches and technical staff, he does not have a specific person who acts as his “coaching instructor”. Instead, Faé entrusted the coaching staff as a whole with developing strategy and tactics.