Amad Shines as Ivory Coast Starts AFCON Campaign Strongly

The defending champions commenced their AFCON campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Mozambique last week, thanks to a decisive goal from Amad. The 23-year-old expressed immense pride in his performance, stating, “I am very proud of myself. I have been waiting for this moment for a long time. Wearing my country’s jersey fills me with great pride; it’s a dream come true. We won 1-0, and while I believe we deserved to win by a larger margin, we will take this success and now focus on the next match, which will be quite challenging for us.”

On Sunday, Amad delivered an exceptional curled shot during a crucial match against Cameroon, another leading contender in the tournament. His stellar performance earned him the title of man of the match. Following the game, he remarked, “I’m going to try to give my best in this competition. I’ll never give up.”

When the tournament draw was announced, many had anticipated this matchup between two nations that have collectively won the AFCON title eight times. The match was thrilling, with Cameroon debutant Christian Kofane striking the bar, yet both teams emerged unscathed and in a strong position to progress from Group F. Notably, Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe was present at the Grand Stade de Marrakech, accompanied by fellow France internationals Jules Kounde and Aurelien Tchouameni, to observe the action from the stands.

In light of this result and Mozambique’s victory over Gabon, the latter team has been eliminated from the competition. However, Gabon will strive to conclude their tournament on a positive note when they face Amad’s Ivory Coast on Wednesday, while Cameroon prepares to battle Mozambique on the same day.