Head coach of the senior national team of Ivory Coast Jean-Louis Gasset says his team will turn the pressure of being the host of the tournament to their advantage starting from their opening game against Guinea-Bissau, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
The hosts who are seen as one of the favourites for the title are in the same group with Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau and Equatorial Guinea, and their immediate aim is to get out of the group starting from today’s game against Guinea-Bissau.
Speaking on the game, the 70 year old who will be competing at the AFCON for the first time in what is his first sojourn in African football sees today’s opponent as a tricky one, mentioning their win over Super Eagles as one of the reasons why they should be treated with respect.
Despite the fact that they are yet to win a game at the AFCON and are ranked 103rd in the FIFA rankings, 54 spots lower than Ivory Coast, Gasset said they have shown with their win over Nigeria that they can be dangerous especially at counter attacks.
“They have beaten Nigeria in the qualifiers and we know they have good players especially Mama Balde, who now plays at Lyon.
“We want to start well but with due respect to our opponents, who are very dangerous at counter attacks but we need to dominate the game,” Gasset said.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
