Kaba Diawara is about to play his second AFCON on the Guinea bench. Having been eliminated in the Round of 16 in Cameroon, the Guinean coach intends to lead the Syli to the summit in Côte d'Ivoire. The Guinean team kicks off its campaign against Cameroon this Monday, January 15 at 17:00 GMT.
Kaba Diawara is finally ready for AFCON 2023. And the Syli are aiming for a great campaign. The 48-year-old coach believes his team has reached maturity. "We have an ambition during this competition, we formed a team two years ago, and I'll be taking part in the Africa Cup of Nations finals with this team for the second time. Now we know each other well, and I just hope that we start the competition well, and succeed along the way," he declared in an interview with CAFOnline.com.
Guinea has put in the necessary resources to prepare for this AFCON. Indeed, the Syli completed their training camp in the United Arab Emirates and beat Nigeria in a friendly match. "We have prepared well, especially physically, to be ready for the CAF TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations, Côte d'Ivoire 2023. And we will continue to work hard to be ready for the competition," says the 48-year-old technician.
With defending champions Senegal, Cameroon and Guinea in Pool C, Kaba Diawara is optimistic about leading Guinea to the top of the continent. "My personal ambition is to win, I can't always say that, but when we start a job, we have to do well. We have a young team, and we're in a group with great champions and teams that have been crowned in the competition. We hope to be up to scratch and give our all on the pitch," he says. First test, this Monday January 15 against Cameroon at 5pm GMT.
