The Stallions of Burkina Faso were beaten 1-0 in the Africa Cup of
Nations 2013 final by Nigeria, but prefer to recall their superb South
African campaign as they bid farewell to the continental tournament.
Paul
Put’s men remained unbeaten until the final, only falling to the Super
Eagles by the smallest of margins and only conceding three goals
throughout the whole competition.
The Belgian technician paid homage to his players for their incredible team effort.
“Burkina
have grown up through this competition. I am proud of my players. We
did the best we could and that we have to accept,” stated Put to RFI after the match.
As
per their coach, the Stallions have graciously accepted their defeat,
admitting the superiority of the Nigerians on Sunday at Soccer City.
“Perhaps
we lacked a bit of conviction in our game. In the first half we were
tense. We wanted to defend, we wanted to attack and we didn’t know how
Nigeria were going to play (…) We hadn’t dreamt of getting to this
stage of the competition. We have to congratulate Nigeria for their
mentality and their game,” admitted Charles Kaboré, one of the best
Burkina Faso players of this Afcon 2013.
And their second place, undreamt of at kick-off of the tournament, represents a huge source of motivation for them.
“I
think that what is happening to us, despite the defeat, is a good thing
for the team. I’m going to continue to work to progress because I
believe that I can do even better. I’m not going to give up, I will
continue to fight,” promised Jonathan Pitroipa, elected best player of
the South African Africa Cup.
So
now it is with a feeling of mission accomplished and full of confidence
that the Stallions’ camp have turned their eyes towards Brazil.
“The
road ahead is still long, but it is very satisfying for a coach to see
that the work put in over all these months has finally paid off.
“Now
we have four matches left to qualify for the upcoming World Cup and
this second place gives us a bit of confidence,” assured Paul Put.
The
players and coaching staff of Burkina Faso are expected in Ouagadougou
this Monday, where an exceptional welcome awaits them.
source: mtnfootball.com
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