Leopards’ loss ignites memories of 2015 Cup
Ivory Coast's Sebastien Haller celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates during their Africa Cup of Nations semi-final match against DR Congo at Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara, Abidjan, Ivory Coast on February 7, 2024.
What you need to know:
- In Kinshasa, the disappointment was great. Sébastien Desabre's men conceded their first defeat at this African Cup. President Félix Tshisekedi expressed "his encouragement to the DRC Leopards after their defeat". He added that "the Congolese national team's performance is very honourable".
As in 1998 and 2015, the Democratic Republic of Congo has reached the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations. The Leopards were beaten 0-1 by the Elephants of Côte d'Ivoire in Abidjan.
As in 2015, the DRC national team lost in the semi-final to Côte d'Ivoire.
The Ivorian goal was scored by Sébastien Haller in the 65th minute. The Leopards' attacks were well contained by a well-organised Côte d'Ivoire team.
"We lost the thread of the match because we were up against a great Côte d'Ivoire team. So we'll be congratulating Côte d'Ivoire and concentrating on Saturday's game," said coach Sébastien Desabre.
"We're proud to have made our people happy, to have put in a good performance, even if we could have put ourselves in the clear beforehand. We're going to savour the moment before the final," said Haller.
The Leopards will face Bafana Bafana, who also lost to Nigeria's Super Eagles, in the third-place play-off on Saturday 10 February.
"We're going to fight right to the end to try and claim 3rd place," added Congolese goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi. "It's obviously sad, but let's not forget what we've achieved. We can be proud of having fought throughout this African Cup of Nations for the country and for the people who are suffering over there," said Mpasi.
In Kinshasa, the disappointment was great. Sébastien Desabre's men conceded their first defeat at this African Cup. President Félix Tshisekedi expressed "his encouragement to the DRC Leopards after their defeat". He added that "the Congolese national team's performance is very honourable".
Tshisekedi "thanks the Congolese players and technical staff for the honour they have done for the nation, particularly the battered population of the east of the country".
The match between Côte d'Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of Congo took on a special flavour. The Congolese players wore black armbands in tribute to the Congolese people who have been dying in the east of the country for nearly 30 years.
A message of support was issued by the players on the eve of the match.
Well before the start of this semi-final match, during the playing of the Congolese national anthem, the DRC athletes and even the technical staff made a gesture, miming a gun to the temple and another hand gagging the mouth.
Desabre explained that "it was a message of support for the victims of the war, to point out that there are indeed things happening in the east of the country that need to be brought to light. And the players are aware of and disappointed by this war. We are fighting for all the Congolese people. We would have liked to put a smile on their faces. We tried to do as much as we could. A national team is a driving force for a nation and tonight, it was also our duty to share this moment and shed light on what is happening in the east of the country."
Congolese supporters in the stadium carried banners and bunting denouncing "the genocide under way in North Kivu and Ituri, two provinces in eastern Congo.
For 30 years, the provinces in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been plagued by armed groups and war.
At present, fighting has intensified in several localities. And according to some international organisations, the death toll in this war has already exceeded 10 million.
According to the United Nations, the violence has forced 7 million Congolese to flee their villages, and more than a million Congolese have found refuge in countries bordering the DRC.
