Magician in white shirt
OYEM, Gabon – The only certainty in hard-to-predict Group C of the Africa Cup of Nations before the opening fixtures today is that Morocco coach Herve Renard will wear the same white shirt on match days.
He wore one in every match when outsiders Zambia shredded the form book in 2012 to win the premier African national team football competition for the only time.
And the 48-year-old Frenchman repeated the act two years ago as he transformed perennial underachievers the Ivory Coast into continental champions.
Renard is the only coach to win the competition with different countries and success for him in Gabon would equal the three-title record shared by Ghanaian Charles Gyamfi and Egyptian Hassan Shehata.
Morocco, whose lone African success came 41 years ago, and twotime champions the Ivory Coast are in Group C, based in northern Gabonese town Oyem.
The Democratic Republic of Congo, third at the last Afcon, and dangerous outsiders Togo complete the line-up in arguably the toughest of the four first-round mini-leagues.
Today, the pursuit of quarterfinals places begins with a doubleheader featuring the Ivory Coast against Togo and DR Congo against Morocco at the 20 000-seat Stades d’Oyem.
Moroccan officials set the bar high for Renard when he signed up early last year, demanding at least a last-four finish in the Afcon and qualification for the 2018 World Cup.
Renard is not looking beyond a top-two Group C finish for now and a ticket to the knockout phase.
“I think qualification for the quarterfinals is our minimum objective,” said Renard.
Congolese Florent Ibenge, one of four local coaches among the 16 at the tournament, was not giving much away either. “This will be a very tough group to qualify from,” he predicted. For Ibenge, there was the frustration of seeing a long-standing African football sore point – match bonuses – make an untimely reappearance two days before tackling Morocco.
Former Guinea and Benin handler Michel Dussuyer succeeded compatriot Renard at Ivory Coast, and recent results have been encouraging. The Toure brothers – centre back Kolo and midfielder Yaya – have retired and attacking speedster Gervinho is injured.
A bonus is luring Crystal Palace flier Wilfried Zaha from the England fold.
While Togo are ranked far below their top-10 rivals, Dussuyer does not see them as less of a threat, especially with legendary coach Claude le Roy in charge.