Savior of the Ivory Coast in the quarter-final against Mali, while he could have missed the CAN due to injury, young striker Simon Adingra could be the missing link for the Elephants in their quest for the title. Against DR Congo, in the semi-final, Wednesday February 7, the native of Yamoussoukro should have a little more playing time and continue his crazy rise.
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From our special correspondent in Bouaké,
He will remember it all his life. This goal scored in the quarter-final against Mali will not be an achievement intended for football schools, but rather for the archives of the history of Ivorian football. They will tell how the young Simon Adingra, 22 years old, equalized against The Mali in the last minute of regulation time to allow his country to pursue its dream of winning a third star. A goal that lit the fire in the Bouaké stadium which had certainly never experienced such a crazy afternoon. Simon Adingra had not experienced such a maelstrom of emotions either. “ It was incrediblehe says. I can’t explain what I felt. It went from zero to 10, from 10 to zero. It goes up, it goes down, it’s incredible “.
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Incredible especially since Simon Adingra was on the verge of missing the CAN for a hamstring injury detected the day before the publication of the list of 27 for the African Cup. Despite the minimum period of four weeks for recovery, the coach of the Ivory Coast, Jean-Louis Gasset, had insisted on incorporating it into his list. The now ex-coach will always be able to congratulate himself for his flair.
But Simon Adingra owes it only to himself to come back so quickly and so decisively. While the Ivorians were worried about his absence due to injury or because of a refusal from his club Brighton (English Premier League), the striker showed all his determination to play in the CAN at home. “ I cannot express the pride it gives me to have to go on the field to represent the nation. The rumors that Brighton are holding me back are completely false. I am motivated to represent my country. I am working extremely hard every day to recover from my injury », published Adingra to reassure his supporters at the end of December.
We had to wait and above all remain powerless in the face of the rout of our friends who were humiliated in the first place. Simon Adingra, in “convalescence” was obliged to follow the first two Ivory Coast matches from the stands. During the match against Equatorial Guinea (4-0), he was thrown into the shipwreck only in the 87th minute, only to emerge with tears that moved the Ivorians.
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Today, the smile no longer seems to leave the man who received his first call-up with the Elephants in July 2023 and whom an Ivorian journalist tenderly described as “ little hero » at the end of the meeting.
Convincing when he entered the round of 16 against Senegal, decisive against Mali in the quarter-finals, Simon Adinga could have his chance this Wednesday in the semi-finals against the DR Congo. He who has only played 71 minutes since the start of the CAN looks like he doesn’t want to stop there. “ We didn’t come this far to stop. We want to go to the final », he insisted after the qualification of Côte d’Ivoire in the last four.