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Like Senegal and China at Korea/Japan 2002 and Jamaica before them at France 98, the Elephants of Côte d'Ivoire will be one of the major novelties at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™, where they will take their bow on football's greatest stage.
Following the draw for the qualifiers, no-one held out much hope for the Ivorians, such was the formidable opposition in their group in the form of Cameroon, Egypt, Sudan and Libya. Set against Cameroon's five appearances and Egypt's two appearances in the FIFA World Cup finals, the Elephants' solitary CAF African Cup of Nations' title achieved in Senegal in 1992 paled into insignificance. The Ivorians had even failed to qualify for the last Nations Cup in Tunisia.
The underdogs nevertheless got off to a flying start, registering four wins and only one defeat in their opening five matches, the highlight being their 2-1 victory over Egypt in Cairo. The build-up to this crucial encounter was marred by the death of their assistant coach Mama Ouattara, who collapsed during a training session. A mourning squad vowed to secure qualification by way of honouring his memory.
The Elephants embarked on the second half of the qualifiers as leaders of Group 3 and brushed Benin aside in an emphatic 3-0 home victory. They faltered somewhat in their next match, managing only a 0-0 draw against Libya in Tripoli. Cameroon, whose pride had taken a battering, set out to win their five remaining fixtures and managed to claw back most of the deficit before their head-to-head encounter with the Ivorians in Abidjan.
That match was billed as the group 'final', with Côte d'Ivoire now favourites to emerge victorious. Even a draw would have sufficed, but the Indomitable Lions pulled off a 3-2 victory and took over top spot in the section with only the final matchday to come. The Elephants were no longer in control of their own destiny and few observers expected Cameroon to fall at the final hurdle.
Hope had been all but banished until the 'miracle of Omdurman' where Côte d'Ivoire recorded a 3-1 victory away to Sudan, while Cameroon were being held to a 1-1 draw by Egypt in Yaounde. The 'divine qualification’, as Ivorians like to call it, was in the bag.
Côte d'Ivoire owe their historic qualification for Germany to an exceptional generation of footballers who for the most part served their apprenticeship at the academy set up by Jean-Marc Guillou just outside Abidjan. Aruna Dindane, Kolo Toure, Didier Zokora, Arthur Boka, Blaise Kouassi and Barry Copa all "graduated" from Guillou's academy and formed the nucleus of the side in its successful qualifying campaign.
When you add the goalscoring talent of Chelsea's Didier Drogba (nine goals in qualifying), it is easy to see why the Elephants have been so successful. The striker's winning mentality has rubbed off on his colleagues and he has gradually imposed himself as the undisputed leader of the national side.
Drogba's partnership with Dindane proved to be the most prolific in the African Zone qualifiers and was the key to Côte d'Ivoire's success. The Lens striker was on target six times and provided numerous assists. Mention should also be made of the valuable contributions made by Bonaventure Kalou and the formidable partnership in the centre of the defence formed by Toure and Cyrille Domoraud. Jean Jacques Tizie, the keeper, was another who distinguished himself.
Guiding this impressive array of talent is French coach Henri Michel, who has already led teams to the FIFA World Cup finals on three previous occasions (France, Cameroon and Tunisia). Despite coming in for a lot of criticism for his selection policies throughout the qualifying campaign, he stuck resolutely to his beliefs and earned his reward. His humility was epitomised when he stayed away from the triumphant return to Abidjan, leaving centre stage to his players.
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