CAN 2021: Ivory Coast awaits the awakening of Sébastien Haller, the Elephant who tramples

Ivory Coast are expecting more from current Champions League top scorer Sebastien Haller, who was transparent in the Africa Cup of Nations opener. “Already, he expects a lot more from himself”, asks his coach, Patrice Beaumelle. “I think he was a little bit disappointed with his performance, but like all players”, continues the French technician. “I expect more from him, he knows that.”

His poor performance in the first match against Equatorial Guinea did not prevent the Elephants from winning (1-0). It was Max-Alain Gradel, the captain, who scored, not the Ajax Amsterdam striker, at the top of the Gunners’ Champions League standings with 10 goals, ahead of Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich, 9 goals).

“He is aware of his game” average against Equatorial Guinea, explains Beaumelle. “Sometimes a look is enough between a player and a coach, it’s no use talking too much about him, he’s a competitor, I’m sure he’ll bring us a lot later.” Haller is not the only Champions League star to start his CAN slowly. Liverpool stars Egyptian Mohamed Salah and Senegalese Sadio Mané also disappointed on their first outings.

A “complete” player

Mané only scored on a penalty at the very end of the match against Zimbabwe (1-0) and remained very transparent against Guinea (0-0). But the Covid-19 disrupted the preparation of all the teams, which were hardly able to play friendly matches before the tournament.

“I managed to get my group two days before the first game, recalls Beaumelle, it’s not always easy to work.” Personally, Sébastien Haller “had 10 days of Covid, locked up”, underlines his coach. “He arrived two days before the first game. I decided to bring him into the competition because he had not yet experienced the intensity of an African Cup. To know the pressure, it was important that Seb can start”. Most “with the three, four days that have passed since the first match, he is acclimatizing like all players.”

“In general, these four days have done us good to work together a little more”, adds the coach. Beaumelle made the Ajax Lancer his attacking leader. “Seb comes of age”, he told AFP. “He’s a player I was already following in 2014, I went to Auxerre to see a match, there was Willy Boly too. These two players were playing in the young categories for France.”

Beaumelle then watched him “in Germany (Eintracht Frankfurt, editor’s note), where he scored incredible goals, in England (West Ham, editor’s note), where I saw him make good performances despite the more kick and rush, more direct football”. “Despite his large size”, Haller is “a ball player, appreciate Beaumelle, he loves all that is support, surrender”. And above all, the striker “has an incredible presence in the area, he is skilful with his head, with both feet he catches the ball, he is complete”, says the coach. All he needs is a first CAN goal.