Guela Doue of Cote Ivoire
Friday Jun 05, 2026. 11:00
Ivory Coast received a massive confidence boost ahead of the 2026 World Cup after claiming a historic win over France in a warm-up match at the Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes on Thursday.
Elephants head coach Emerse Fae put out a strong starting XI which included captain Franck Kessie, Yahia Fofana, Ghislain Konan, Seko Fofana and Simon Adingra, while Amad Diallo, Nicolas Pepe and Ibrahim Sangare came off the bench.
Les Bleus’ Paris Saint-Germain contingent was rested following their UEFA Champions League exploits last weekend, but an experimental side still posed the West Africans numerous problems before Rayan Cherki broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time with a clinical finish.
However, Cote d’Ivoire hit back through Guela Doue just eight minutes into the second half after Didier Deschamps rang the changes at the break and Diallo completed the famous comeback six minutes from time with a first-time strike to seal a 2-1 victory against one of the tournament favourites.
Fae’s side are expected to duke it out with Germany for top spot in Group E at the global showpiece as they look to qualify for the knockout stages for the first time after four failed attempts.
The three-time Africans campaign will kick off their campaign against Ecuador in Philadelphia on June 14 before taking on Die Mannschaft in Toronto six days later and Curacao in the same city as their opening match on the 25th.