CAN 2022: Comoros in search of a new goalkeeper before challenging Cameroon
Jean-Daniel Padovani, goalkeeper coach of the Comoros selection, January 23, 2022 in front of the press.
© Cyril ETIENNE/RFI
Text by: Nicolas Bamba Follow
4 mins
With 12 players and staff positive for Covid-19, including Ali Ahamada and Mayadh Ousseini, and Ben Boina injured, the Comoros find themselves without a goalkeeper before facing Cameroon in the round of 16 of CAN 2022, Monday, January 24.
On the eve of this match, the Coelacanthes are looking, among their field players, which one could end up in the cage.
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From our special correspondent in Yaoundé,
It was a smiling Jean-Daniel Padovani who appeared at a press conference at the Olembé stadium on Sunday January 23, accompanied by captain Nadjim Abdou.
Some 24 hours from a round of 16 of
CAN 2022
against the Indomitable Lions, the Comorian goalkeeper coach is keeping his spirits up in the face of "
a special situation
".
On Saturday, the Comorian Football Federation indicated that 12 members of the national team were positive for Covid-19, against none in the Cameroonian camp (spared since the start of the competition).
The coach, Amir Abdou, is one of them.
Goalkeepers Ali Ahamada and Mayadh Ousseini too.
And
Ben Boina
, the last goalkeeper in the squad, has been injured since this
clash with Ghanaian André Ayew
in the last match of the first round.
In short, the Comoros have, for the time being, no more goalkeeper.
And yet, Jean-Daniel Padovani keeps smiling.
“
It's quite funny.
We laugh, we prefer to take it like that
, ”he slips.
“
Potential goalkeepers
” among outfield players
After the (unpleasant) surprise of learning this unfortunate news, the Coelacaths "
immediately remobilized to get back to work and find the best possible solutions
", says Jean-Daniel Padovani, at the center of the latest discussions with the rest of the staff.
The former doorman of Angers, Cannes and Dijon agreed to answer certain questions.
The management of the Comoros has "
decided to gather all the valid players and to put the situation flat
".
He continues: “
The first thing, to find the goalkeeper, was that it had to come from them.
That's what happened.
We had potential goalkeepers.
»
But, unsurprisingly, Jean-Daniel Padovani remains silent as to the identity of the potential neo-goalkeeper who will face
Vincent Aboubakar, Karl-Toko Ekambi and the other Cameroonian attackers
. “
The goalkeeper is not yet determined. Anyway, even if he was determined, I wouldn't say it (laughs). Some may be able to analyze the keeper – the height, the weight, the speed
,” he laughs.
It is also impossible to find out more about the tactics of a completely overhauled Comorian team: “
We are in Cameroon, we have just detected 12 cases for a match against Cameroon… We are not going to give you our plan of action either. game against Cameroon
!
“Padovani nevertheless concedes that this situation “
changes things
” in the approach.
► Schedule, match results and team standings
“We are in history”
On the side of the state of mind, the Comoros do not flinch. “
We leave brothers on the side. Leaving soldiers on the side is always hard to swallow. But we are a group, we support each other morally. We know things can turn quickly. The morale is there
, ”promises the captain, Nadjim Abdou. Jean-Daniel Padovani approves: “
We will enter the field with the same values that we have shown since the start.
»
The technician is well aware of the difficulty of his quest: “
Between fun at the end of training and an official match, there is a big difference. Of course, you will never find a perfect goalkeeper.
“And yet, “
we try to be positive as much as possible
”, still insists the spokesperson of a team ready to “
play it all
” at all costs.
“
It is historic that the Comoros qualify for a CAN, historic that the Comoros win a match in a CAN, historic that the Comoros qualify for a round of 16… And it is historic that the Comoros (…) play a match with an outfield player in the cage.
We are in history
,” concludes Jean-Daniel Padovani.
A story whose continuation is written on Monday September 24 from 8 p.m. (7 p.m. UT) at the Olembé stadium against the Indomitable Lions.
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