panafrica
09-02-2005, 12:07 PM
World Cup fever is building in Ivory Coast, with the Elephants just a victory away from Germany 2006.
On Sunday Ivory Coast host World Cup veterans Cameroon, in a winner takes all clash.
Even in a country stumbling from political to military crises, Sunday's game is on everyone's lips.
Tickets sold out almost as soon as they were on offer, to the huge frustration of many luckless fans.
In the northern half of Ivory Coast, which has been controlled by the New Forces rebels for three years, fans will be able to watch the game on giant screens.
While in the captial, Abidjan the Felix Houphouet Boigny stadium, commonly known as Felicia, has been spruced up for one of its most glorious occasions.
The sporting press has worked itself into a fever, counting down the days until D-Day, interviewing any Ivorian players they can get a hold of, and asking local coaches for expert opinion on the big match.
A succession of photos of Ivorian players arriving at their hotel, holding their luggage, made the front page of the daily Le Sport.
'The Elephants in the Sacred Forest,' was the headline, perhaps the first time that a luxury hotel has been compared to a sacred forest.
The French coach Henri Michel's tactical choices have been analysed, both by the journalists and the man in the street.
"It will be a tight game, I am sure, but I am not too worried, because God is with us," Michel, a security guard, told me.
Ivory Coast are two points clear of Cameroon in Group Three.
A victory will guarantee a first ever World Cup place, while a draw would mean the Elephants need to beat Sudan in Khartoum in their final game.
A victory on Sunday would spark one of the biggest parties this country has seen.
A defeat... well, no one in Ivory Coast is prepared to contemplate a defeat!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/4204710.stm
On Sunday Ivory Coast host World Cup veterans Cameroon, in a winner takes all clash.
Even in a country stumbling from political to military crises, Sunday's game is on everyone's lips.
Tickets sold out almost as soon as they were on offer, to the huge frustration of many luckless fans.
In the northern half of Ivory Coast, which has been controlled by the New Forces rebels for three years, fans will be able to watch the game on giant screens.
While in the captial, Abidjan the Felix Houphouet Boigny stadium, commonly known as Felicia, has been spruced up for one of its most glorious occasions.
The sporting press has worked itself into a fever, counting down the days until D-Day, interviewing any Ivorian players they can get a hold of, and asking local coaches for expert opinion on the big match.
A succession of photos of Ivorian players arriving at their hotel, holding their luggage, made the front page of the daily Le Sport.
'The Elephants in the Sacred Forest,' was the headline, perhaps the first time that a luxury hotel has been compared to a sacred forest.
The French coach Henri Michel's tactical choices have been analysed, both by the journalists and the man in the street.
"It will be a tight game, I am sure, but I am not too worried, because God is with us," Michel, a security guard, told me.
Ivory Coast are two points clear of Cameroon in Group Three.
A victory will guarantee a first ever World Cup place, while a draw would mean the Elephants need to beat Sudan in Khartoum in their final game.
A victory on Sunday would spark one of the biggest parties this country has seen.
A defeat... well, no one in Ivory Coast is prepared to contemplate a defeat!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/4204710.stm