Ivory Coast coach reflects on World Cup exit: 'Maybe we were lacking in maturity'

The African nation were playing in their first ever World Cup knockout encounter and fell behind in the first half, but Amad Diallo levelled matters before Erling Haaland broke Ivorian hearts with four minutes remaining.

"It's difficult to lose, you know, in the last few minutes," Fae said in a post-match press conference. "It's difficult to find the right words, because my players fought from the very first minutes until the very last minute."

Fae, who guided Ivory Coast to victory in the Africa Cup of Nations in early 2024, acknowledged the higher level of competition at the World Cup posed a significant challenge.

It was also a first experience of the global tournament for many of Ivorian players and Fae says they will take on learnings from he believes was a successful campaign.

"We've learned a lot, thanks to this competition," he said. "It was the very first World Cup for many players, and maybe we were lacking in maturity.

"Maybe we should have tried to make it until the extra time, but when you're playing this type of team, you know, as soon as they get the slightest opportunity to score, well, they take it, and that's what happened this afternoon."

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