COMOROS head coach Amir Abdou said his side never doubted themselves after they produced one of the biggest upsets in Africa Cup of Nations history.
The debutants stunned four-time champions Ghana 3-2 in Garoua on Tuesday night to secure their first-ever AFCON victory and send their more illustrious opponents packing from the tournament.
The Black Stars had captain Andre Ayew rather harshly sent off after 25 minutes for a dangerous attempt to win the ball and, after coming back from a two-goal deficit, lost when Comoros’ Ahmed Mogni scored his second goal late on.
“We did not back down even after Ghana equalised. We always believed we could achieve a famous victory for our nation,” Abdou, who has been in charge of the Comoros national team since 2014, said during his post-match press conference.
“I sent on attacking players in the belief that we could score a third goal and my decision paid off. Now we must wait to see if we are among the best four third-placed teams and play in the second round.
“We are satisfied with the way we played. We had a plan and stuck to it. We learnt from the mistakes we made in previous games. Obviously, I’m unhappy that we conceded twice, but we will improve.”
Comoros finished third in Group C with three points, while the Black Stars ended up rock bottom.
Comoros will know on Thursday if they have qualified for the round of 16 as one of the best four third-placed teams.
In the other match of the group also on Tuesday night in Yaounde, Morocco and Gabon drew 2-2 to retain first and second places respectively and qualify for the round of 16, which kicks off on Sunday.
Gabon led twice through Jim Allevinah and a Nayef Aguerd own-goal while Sofiane Boufal and Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi netted for Morocco.
Gabon had to play without their three top stars — Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Nice midfielder Mario Lemina and Saint-Etienne’s Denis Bouanga — due to Covid-19, but they still produced possibly their best performance so far in the tournament.
