Ivory Coast Coach, Gasset: ‘Nigeria opted to pack the bus against us’

Ivory Coast coach, Jean-Louis Gasset says Nigeria decided to pack the bus in Thursday evening’s Group A second round game at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Gasset insists the Elephants encountered an ultra-defensive system implemented by the Super Eagles.

“It was a very physical match; Nigeria chose to play very low with a five-man defense to exploit counterattacks with their star striker. It was a tightly contested match,” he remarked at his post match press conference.
Gasset also believes his players failed to respond to the physical challenge imposed by José Peseiro’s team.

“We didn’t give the impression of being able to compete physically,” noted the French technician who is however confident of making it through to the knockout round.

“We knew that we had a young team in terms of experience but not in terms of quality. I have confidence in this group; I know that it is young, I know that it is tender; it simply requires psychological work,” stated the coach.
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“We are going to prepare for a win against Guinea-Bissau. I am hoping that our two injured players will be able to play at least part of the match,” he concluded.