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The Elephants failed to qualify for the World Cup in 2018, but hope to do so in two years
Ivory Coast coach Patrice Beaumelle says that his dream with the Ivory Coast team is to reach the knockout stage of the World Cup.
The Elephants have been to three World Cups, their first outing was in the 2006 edition in Germany, followed by the 2010 edition in South Africa and the 2014 edition in Brazil. Each time, the two-time African champions failed to make it past the group stage and did not make it to the 2018 edition in Russia.
Their journey to the next World Cup in Qatar in 2022 begins in May next year in a group that includes Cameroon, Mozambique and Malawi.
However, Beaumelle’s mind is focused on the African Cup of Nations that starts in January 2022 and she has to compete with Madagascar, Ethiopia and Niger to reach the final.
“Reaching the knockout stage at the World Cup with Ivory Coast is still a dream for me. Every coach wants to reach the last stages of this great tournament,” Beaumelle said at the FIFA website.
“The World Cup is the ultimate goal of any national coach, but it is premature to talk about it now. My goals under my current contract relate to the next AFCON. As I said before, we are going through a transition, so we are currently focused on the continental tournament. However, the World Cup is certainly on my mind.
“Our group is very difficult. Cameroon is used to reaching the World Cup and having faced Malawi and Mozambique before, I can say that they are very tough teams, especially at home. In addition, we know that traveling in Africa is difficult, which will make our task even more difficult. Every point will be vital on the road to Qatar 2022.
The most shocking era of the Ivory Coast came with players like Didier Drogba, the Touré brothers, Salomon Kalou and Didier Zokora, among others.
Most of them have retired or are close to retiring and with a new generation of talents to replace them, such as Franck Kessie, Eric Baily, Serge Aurier, Wilfried Zaha, Maxwel Cornet and Nicolas Pepe.
As such, comparisons are made to the earlier era, something Beaumelle advised against.
“Comparing the country’s golden generation led by Drogba with the current crop is premature. I faced that powerful team several times when I was coach of Zambia, and I think the current generation of Côte d’Ivoire players is inspired by them, ”he said.
“Young players have photos of former stars in their rooms, so why can’t they follow in their footsteps? Perhaps the best example is Kylian Mbappé, who managed to fulfill his childhood dreams. Elephants can do the same and I am here to help them do that. “
