Cairo, Egypt (PANA) - Ivorian coach Henri Michel explained that his goalkeeper's injury was one the major reasons for his team's 1-3 loss to Egypt in Cairo on Saturday.
"Jean Jacques Tizié's injury was one of the main reasons for our defeat. His substitute, Boubacar Barry, didn't have the time to settle down when the Egyptians scored the second goal, and that affected him profoundly," Michel noted.
On the absence of such key players as captain and star Didier Drogba from Saturday's match, Michel affirmed that he wanted them to have a rest since some of the players were under the threat of a second yellow card.
"I have 23 players in my team and I would like to try them all. Moreover, some of the players have already been booked and I did not want them to be suspended before the quarterfinals," he added.
Following the defeat, Cote d'Ivoire ended second in Group A to Egypt. Both teams advanced to the quarterfinals scheduled to start Friday.