Frustrated Ivory Coast coach speaks after Egypt defeat

Ivory Coast head coach Émerse Fae was not a happy after his side failed to progress to the semifinals of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco on Saturday.

Mohamed Salah scored and provided an assist as Egypt withstood the Ivorian wave to snatch a dramatic 3-2 victory in a thrilling quarter-final.

“We are frustrated by tonight’s result. We had prepared our players to face this Egyptian team, but we made far too many mistakes at key moments in the match to hope to eliminate them,” he said.

“What hurts most tonight are those mistakes. It took us some time to get into the match. I regret conceding the first goal so early, as well as the second. We reacted well by coming back to 2-1 before halftime. But the third goal put us in trouble. It’s hard to explain these lapses in concentration.

“We will continue to work to prepare for the World Cup.”