The Ivory Coast apparently wanted to bring back successful coach Hervé Renard. However, the action failed.
After the separation from national coach Jean-Louis Gasset, Africa Cup hosts Ivory Coast failed, according to a media report, to bring back their former successful coach Hervé Renard at short notice.
The national coach of the French women’s footballers should take over the team on loan for the duration of the African Championship, as the AP news agency reported on Friday. However, corresponding discussions between the associations did not lead to success.
“Fate decided otherwise”
“The negotiations didn’t end positively because it wasn’t meant to be. I would have loved it, but fate decided otherwise,” said Renard in an interview with the TV channel Canal Plus. The 55-year-old won the African Championship title with Ivory Coast in 2015 and was now expected to replace his compatriot Gasset.
This had to go on Wednesday, although qualification for the round of 16 was still possible despite a 4-0 defeat in the preliminary round against Equatorial Guinea. Thanks to Morocco’s 1-0 win against Zambia, Ivory Coast reached the knockout phase as one of the best third-place teams in the group. There the hosts will face defending champions Senegal on Monday. After the Renard deal fell through, interim coach Emerse Faé will continue to look after the team.