Ivory Coast : the Elephants finally have their warm-up match

In search of a new opponent, following the defection of Mozambique, Côte d’Ivoire announced on Monday that it had completed its final preparatory match before hosting the CAN 2023 on home soil.

Côte d’Ivoire, hosts of the CAN 2023, will begin their training camp in San Pedro on January 2.

Before opening their campaign against Guinea Bissau on January 13, the Elephants will have the opportunity to test their strategy and team dynamics in a final friendly match.

But it won’t be against the Mambas, who have finally withdrawn, leaving Serge Aurier’s team in a quandary.

In the end, it will be Sierra-Leone who will replace them for a friendly scheduled for 5pm on January 6 at the Stade Laurent Pokou (20,000 seats) in San Pedro, the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) announced on Monday.

The team will then return to their base in Abidjan on January 7, where the Elephants will set up camp at the Hôtel Maison Palmiers.

This will serve as their headquarters for the remainder of their preparations, providing an ideal environment for final adjustments before the start of the continental tournament.

Gasset’s list to be announced on Thursday

The Elephants’ coach Jean-Louis Gasset, who has already announced a pre-selection of 54 players, will announce his final list for the Africa Cup of Nations on Thursday December 28 at a press conference to be held at the Radisson Blu Abidjan Airport.

This will be earlier than the Wednesday January 3 deadline for all coaches.

Haller en soin, la Côte d'Ivoire retient son souffle ! 💨 #football #infos #afrique #can pic.twitter.com/3c2WbM3J7I

— Afrik-Foot (@afrikfoot) December 22, 2023

Meanwhile, Sébastien Haller (21 caps, 10 goals), the Elephants’ star striker, has an ankle injury and is very doubtful for the CAN.

It’s a situation that has national team followers worried, and they’re hoping for positive news from the 29-year-old striker as soon as possible.