Ivory Coast against Nigeria – the 34th Africa Cup is facing a dream finale on Sunday (February 11, 2024, from 9 p.m.). It’s not just the countries involved that are electrified.
It’s such a thing with “football fairy tales”. Sometimes the term is somewhat overused. But what is currently happening in and with Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations is perhaps best described this way.
It’s like a fairytale how euphoric the hosts started the tournament three weeks ago. And how deeply sad and desperate they were when their team had already been eliminated after a disastrous preliminary round. Only unexpectedly favorable results in the other groups lifted the team, whose coach Jean-Louis Gasset had since been fired, into the knockout phase as one of the least bad third-placed teams in the group.
Coach gone, suddenly it’s working
Everything has been different since then: Ivory Coast has gone from win to win since the round of 16 and is suddenly in the final on Sunday against Nigeria. An entire country can no longer get out of the frenzy of celebration. People celebrate all night long, the ubiquitously offered orange team jerseys cost twice as much on the street and hardly anyone goes to work anymore. A country in football ecstasy.
Right in the middle: Sebastién Haller. Borussia Dortmund’s giant goalscorer is already emblazoned on every second billboard in the cityscape of the metropolis of Abidjan – the 29-year-old is something of a football hero in the country. Alone: At the beginning of the tournament he was out due to the consequences of an ankle injury.
Sebastién Haller – now right in the middle instead of just there
It wasn’t until the knockout games began that he was able to play, at least in phases. In the semi-final against the Democratic Republic of Congo he was allowed to start for the first time. Well – the great hope did not play brilliantly against the Congo. His movements seemed sluggish, not lively or even explosive.
The Ivory Coast fans cheer euphorically.
The BVB striker clearly still lacks the necessary fitness to get back to the level that made him so interesting for Dortmund Borussia in the summer of 2022. But just the presence of the 1.90 meter tall striker seems to give the “Elephants”, as the team is called, security and somehow self-confidence these days.
Winning goal with a botched move
In the semifinals, his team was superior to their opponents. But despite the superiority, not much was achieved at the front. Haller himself had missed a brilliant header opportunity shortly before half-time – he shook his head in annoyance and his already rarely positive expression darkened further.
It seemed a bit magical. But then Max Gradel’s right-wing cross sailed into the penalty area. The Congolese defenders misjudged themselves and Haller volleyed the ball from behind. This shot also actually failed; Haller somehow hit half of the bullet with his shin. This gave the ball such a spin that it landed over Lionel Mpasi-Nzau, the Congo keeper, and flew into the net.
1-0 for Ivory Coast. It should be enough. The opponent no longer had enough energy to strike back in the remaining minutes.
Opponent Nigeria – tight at the back, strong at the front
So now the final – probably with Haller and against Nigeria. The “Super Eagles” were also in crisis mode when they barely managed a draw (1-1) after poor preparation results in the opener against Equatorial Guinea. After that, the sophisticated defensive system of coach Jose Peseiro, who had become quite unpopular at the time, became more and more established.
Nigeria only conceded two goals in the entire tournament – and at the front, the above-average strikers Ademola Lookman (Atalanta Bergamo, formerly RB Leipzig) and Victor Osimhen (SSC Napoli) usually help them score the one goal that is usually enough to decide the game. The fact is: two major African football nations are meeting. And the spectacle is guaranteed. Maybe even another fairy tale. No matter how it turns out.