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Elephants 4 – Benin 1

By: gianfranco | January 25th, 2008 | No Comments »

The Elephants are on a role. Two matches, six points and a sure spot in the next round means that the boys in orange are doing exactly as expected, win. As I said earlier on it would be very shocking if this team did not get through and further continue through to the final of the ANC. I am not the only that believes the elephants can book a spot as Ghanian midfilder Micheal Essien also believes that he can meet his Chelsea teamates Drogba and Kalou in the final.

A litte about todays match. Drogba kicked off the scoring in the 40th minute, after a string of strong play from Benin, forcing Boubacar Barry to make some good saves and keep his team strong. Once Drogba opened the scoring the rest was history, Yaya Toure struck again four minutes later on a sublime cross from his brother. A two nil lead at halftime doubled by the 63rd minute with Keita and Dindane also finding the back of the net.

Gili ran the squad quite shrewdly today even being able to get Didier twenty minutes of rest. Gili will continue his mastery of the lineup and most likely play a second squad will could feature the likes of Bakari Kone and Marco Zoro. Gili has favored the Kalou and Drogba pairing which found very good results today with Keita, but late in the first half. I am in favor of resting the big eleven or at least a few, but not at the cost of the teams chemistry. But with the group looking like this:

Elephants 6
Mali 4
Nigeria 1
Benin 0

It makes for very interesting upcoming game with the Elephants being able to draw with Mali and see them through along with their opponents, and in the process politely leave Nigeria behind. Oh the possibilites…


Tags: African Cup of Nations, Drogba, Kalou, Mali, Nigeria

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Nigeria 0 – Cote d’Ivorie 1

By: gianfranco | January 21st, 2008 | No Comments »

A great start to the ANC for the Elephants, as they were able to beat the heavy hitters of Nigeria with a one-nil victory. This is literally a dream start for the Elephants with the potential to take nine points from the group and with Benin on deck coming fresh off a nil-nil draw with Mali, the Elephants are in ... [read]


Elephants v. Nigeria Preview

By: gianfranco | January 20th, 2008 | 2 Comments »

Today’s game features two African power houses when the IC faces off against
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Cote d’Ivorie has more explosive potential.  The teams as a whole will ... [read]


A Little Ranting Before the ANC

By: gianfranco | January 19th, 2008 | 5 Comments »

CAF
With the African Nations Cup set to kick off tomorrow we have a ton of coverage here at the Cote d’Ivorie blog as well as the main with Daryl giving us a strong introduction to all the teams competing in this edition of the tournament. As you read the previews you begin to get a real ... [read]


Meet the Elephants: Strikers

By: gianfranco | January 17th, 2008 | 5 Comments »

Finally, the true talent of the Elephants is in the striker department where an embarrassment of talent has left me and maybe even the coaches wondering how to find time for so many talented and dynamic footballers. I am sure Uli and Gili have contemplated playing 3-1-6 or even 2-4-4 but as we all know those formations are impractical ... [read]


Meet the Elephants: The Men in the Middle

By: gianfranco | January 17th, 2008 | 1 Comment »

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Meet the Elephants: Back Line

By: gianfranco | January 13th, 2008 | No Comments »

Defense is not as weak as the net minders which bode quite well for Barry and company.  In fact the Elephants boast a very solid back line with a fair amount of international experience.  The strongest, in my opinion, are previewed here.
 
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Meet the Elephants: Keepers

By: gianfranco | January 12th, 2008 | No Comments »

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Just a Little Something

By: gianfranco | January 10th, 2008 | 5 Comments »

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Stielike Takes Leave

By: gianfranco | January 8th, 2008 | 2 Comments »

Uli
Ivory Coast coach Uli Stielike has left the team, the day before their departure for training camp in Kuwait, due to his son’s condition. It seems the news of his son’s coma was rather sudden and his return to the technical area is fully dependent on his son’s condition. Frenchmen Gerard Gili, current Coach of the Ivory ... [read]



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