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The coach of the DR Congo team, Florent Ibenge, before the draw for CAN 2019. RFI / David Kalfa

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) will proceed to draw for the final phase of the next African Cup of Nations (21 June-19 July in Egypt), this April 12 in Giza. The coaches of the 24 qualified teams are eagerly awaiting this moment during which they will know where, when and against which countries they will play the CAN 2019.

From our special envoy in Cairo,

The small world of African football basks in the shadow of the Gezirah Palace, a palace built in Cairo in the 1860s and now part of a large hotel. This is where the Confederation of African Football (CAF) established its headquarters on the eve of the draw for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

The coaches of the national teams qualified for the final phase (June 21-July 19) enjoy the soothing environment, pending the verdict. This Thursday, they have free neighborhood but the mind still a bit cornered by the stake. " Yesterday, the organizers showed us the different hotels in which our teams will be housed during the tournament, as well as the training grounds ," explains Burundi coach Olivier Niyungeko. Today is rest. But there is tension. In your head, you wonder who you are going to meet. But until tomorrow, we are quiet. So we go for a walk to relax a bit .

Some spend a long time seated at the Cairo Marriott Hotel's terrace. Others prefer to use sports facilities, such as the French Hervé Renard and Corentin Martins, respectively coaches of Morocco and Mauritania. And there are those who like Sebastien Migné (Kenya coach) and Sébastien Desabre (Uganda) talk about the ideal preparation for this long-awaited CAN 2019. " We are always a little impatient to know when we will start the competition and against whom we will play, " said the one who leads the "Cranes" Ugandan. " But we are without special pressure. We are just waiting for the draw to finalize our stage of preparation, "concludes the one who would like to meet in the city of Ismailia where he had directed the local club (Ismaily).

Breeders in the expectation

For the moment, the breeders are a bit in the wait. CAF has not yet announced the exact match schedule or meeting schedules. Only the composition of hats finally leaked this Thursday morning, however, pending its approval by the Executive Committee of the Confederation.

Supposed to be placed in the pot 2, DR Congo can only accommodate this situation. " It's true that being in a hat a little more privileged (sic), it may be possible to avoid some complicated opponents from the start, " admits Florent Ibenge. But the boss of the "Leopards" does not prefer to think too much about all this: " We realize that there are no small countries. And we risk being surprised by any team. We will therefore be satisfied with what the fate will give us. "

However, not all are as philosophical as the coach of a Guinea also placed in hat 2. " I can not say that I am quiet , smiles the Belgian Paul Put, who is preparing yet to live its third edition, after 2013 and 2015 with Burkina Faso. In fact, you always have a wish, before the draw. You always want to fall into a playable group. But when you fall in a group of death, it's always complicated ... So, even when you have already played several CAN, you always have this nervousness in you. [...] I can not say that I am 100% nervous. But this wait plays a little .