Ivory
Coast
Introduction
The Ivorians have had the comforting habit of sealing qualification for major tournaments with contemptuous ease in recent years.
Yet, shaken from the invaluable experience shed by the retirements of the centurion-capped duo of Didier Drogba and Didier Zokora, they treaded the fine line of not reaching Africa’s summit this time around. If in Drogba they lost their protagonist, in 'Maestro' Zokora they have lost their protector; the reader of situations and the vigilant organiser in defence.
The scatterbrain defending regularly shown by the Ivorian defence during qualifying is mirrored by the thrashings they were subjected to. A 4-1 defeat to Cameroon in Yaounde and a shock 4-3 defeat to DR Congo - their first competitive home loss in 9 years - in their first 4 games underlined their fragility, and though the return of Kolo Toure knitted up the defence for the final games, it is conceivable that if they meet teams with fine marksmen similar scorelines could still be replicated.
With younger players being embedded in, the ceiling has been lowered for a nation that tends to have great expectations of their megastars. Indeed, the rhetoric from the management and senior players is that qualification itself was an achievement and a good run in the tournament is the target.
The cast of the golden generation still remain though, with the experienced Kolo Toure set to retire after the tournament, and you would wager that, inwardly at least, the aim is for this team to finally win that elusive crown to banish the memories of the recent past, rather than merely guide the youngsters by the hand.
the rhetoric from the management and senior players is that qualification itself was an achievement and a good run in the tournament is the target.
The cast of the golden generation still remain though, with the experienced Kolo Toure set to retire after the tournament, and you would wager that, inwardly at least, the aim is for this team to finally win that elusive crown to banish the memories of the recent past, rather than merely guide the youngsters by the hand.
The Framework
Athletically impressive and technically capable, the Ivory Coast are excellent on the ball and should dominate possession in the majority of their matches. The scythe-tackling midfield pair of Cheick Tiote and Serey Die are undoubtedly the most combative in the tournament, but will have to work hard to safeguard an open-all-hours defence.
Endowed with Gervinho's trickery on the left, Salomon Kalou's productivity on the right, and Yaya Toure centrally, their attacking play is intricate but there are also high crosses from the attacking full backs for the aerial prowess of either Wilfried Bony or Lacina Traore to flourish.