AFCON 2023:A week after Côte d’Ivoire’s improbable triumph, the context “no gree for anybody.”

Above their impeccable delivery as the hosts of an intriguing and controversy-free AFCON 2023, the Elephants of Côte d’Ivoire, against all odds, were crowned champions after defeating highly rated Nigeria 2-1 at the Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara on Sunday, February 11, 2024.

It’s already been a week, yet the whole of Abidjan and Cote d’Ivoire is yet to wake up from the dream of winning their third AFCON title on home soil. 

In a competition that has eight-time African champions Egypt, defending Champions Senegal, 2022 World Cup Semi-Finalists Morocco, and star-studded Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire wasn’t given much chance heading into AFCON 2023, but the 2015 African champions defied all odds and claimed victory in a run similar to Portugal’s Euro 2018 triumph.

The West African side gave an interesting curtain-raiser performance in a 2-0 victory over Guinea-Bissau, before going on to lose their remaining two group-stage matches to Nigeria (1-0) and Equatorial Guinea (4-0).

Following the group stage’s conclusion and the humiliation that solidified the team’s high probability of elimination from the competition, on home soil, the Ivorian Football Federation gave manager Jean-Louis Gasset the door. However, they managed to advance as one of the best losers into the Round of 16.

But instead of being a joyful occasion, the hosts’ round of 16 clash against the reigning champions Senegal—who had a perfect record in the group stage—turned into a source of worry and panic.

Emerse Fae’s first match in charge of the Elephants couldn’t have been more difficult, but somehow, the 40-year-old masterminded a shocking and dramatic penalty shootout victory over Senegal after Franck Kessié’s 86th-minute spot-kick cancelled Habib Diallo’s fourth-minute opener at the Stade Charles Konan Banny.

While speaking with CAF media, Fae said all he did to spark the Elephants was make them see the importance of playing like a team. 

This was evident in how they eliminated top guns in the knockout stages and eventually defeated Nigeria in the final. 

Despite having a similar fate to the Portugal team that won the Euro in 2018, the final against Nigeria showed that they have grown better and stronger in the competition. 

In case the just finished AFCON conveys anything, it’s the participant teams’ “no gree for anybody” methods.