CHAN 2022 - Amir Abdou: "Mauritania have ambition"

Sport News Africa: Your side are in a three-team group, with only one team going through. Is that a handicap in your eyes?

Amir Abdou: We would have preferred a group of four, with two teams qualifying. In a group of three, with only one place in the quarter-finals up for grabs, there is almost no margin for error. But we have to adapt. The format of the CHAN has changed slightly, going from 16 to 18 teams. Mauritania were put in a group of three in the draw, but that takes nothing away from our ambitions. We want to reach the next round, which I think is also the aim of Mali and Angola, our two first-round opponents.

A rather tricky group, then…

Yes. Mali, whom we played twice in Nouakchott a few months ago in friendlies (1-0, 1-1), are a solid, athletic side, runners-up in 2016 and 2020. They are used to this competition, even if, of course, their squad has changed. As for Angola, we know a little less about them, but we know they also have a quality squad, with players from Primeiro do Agosto in particular, a team who regularly play in the CAF Champions League. In short, that gives an idea of the level of the group, and we saw it in the Angola-Mali match (3-3)..

"Two quality opponents"

Your team have nonetheless prepared well, notably drawing in Algeria in December (0-0) and beating Ivory Coast (3-0) during the training camp in Tunisia…

Getting results like that against opponents who are billed as favourites for this CHAN is obviously positive, and it has given the group confidence. We scored a few goals, and our defence showed its solidity. That's encouraging, and it allows us to have ambition. We've been working for months, with training camps and friendlies. I've tried quite a few players, and a backbone has taken shape. Some of them have left to go abroad and so won't be able to take part in this CHAN. But others have come in, we've worked, and today the team is ready for this tournament. There is a desire to do well, with the staff and the players, we work a lot on the pitch, we do video work. I coached FC Nouadhibou, so I know the Mauritanian league well.

You will be discovering the CHAN for the first time personally. What do you think of the competition?

For a start, it will be played in Algeria, a real football country, in some very fine stadiums and on good pitches. Then, some national teams, such as Libya, Ethiopia, Sudan and Angola, are almost their senior A teams. So there will be quality. It's an interesting competition that I'm eager to discover. But I think some changes could be introduced, such as allowing, for example, a Mauritanian player based in Algeria or a Malian in Senegal to take part.

Alexis BILLEBAULT