Emerse Faé Acknowledges Ivory Coast's Proximity to Historic Knockout Qualification

The Ivory Coast national team has found a successful temporary home in the Philadelphia area, where they've trained and remained, even playing a friendly match that drew around 10,000 fans. Following this, they secured a victory against Ecuador in their opening match of the North American World Cup.

As they prepare for their third and final group stage match, and their second at Lincoln Financial Field, the Ivorian footballers are on the cusp of making history. If they avoid defeat against Curaçao on Thursday, they will qualify for the knockout stages for the first time in their four World Cup appearances.

“It would be an immense feeling of pride if we manage to advance,” commented head coach Emerse Faé. “We have great ambitions for this. We would be very happy if we progress to the knockout rounds. The players realize they are close to writing history by reaching the next stage of the World Cup,” he added.

The team is expected to be able to rely on forward Elie Wahi, who is currently under investigation for alleged betting violations while playing for Nice. He started for Ivory Coast in their 1-0 victory over Ecuador in their first match in Philadelphia but missed the 2-1 defeat against Germany in Toronto, Canada.

When asked if Wahi had been questioned by the police, the Marseille prosecutor's office told The Associated Press that “a 23-year-old professional footballer, competing in the French Ligue 1, was arrested on May 29 as part of the investigation.” Elie Wahi stated, “I am on the field, I am not dealing with that. The federation and my representatives did everything possible so that I could be in Canada.”

He added that he had no further comment on the matter and was focused on football: “I am concentrated on the tournament. These are things outside of sports. The most important things are Ivory Coast and the football federation. That’s all.”