Norway coach Solbakken wary of ‘physical’ Ivory Coast in World Cup round of 32

The Elephants reached the knockout stage for the first time in their history after Nicolas Pepe scored twice in an emphatic 2-0 win over Curacao in Philadelphia on Thursday.

Ivory Coast went into their final Group E match knowing victory would secure qualification, and Emerse Fae’s side delivered victory with control, maturity and attacking quality.

The win confirmed Ivory Coast as Group E runners-up and sent them into the round of 32. For Norway, despite suffering a 4-1 defeat against France, they progressed to the next stage after finishing second.

Norway will now face Ivory Coast and speaking ahead of the game, Solbakken admitted his side will face a stun test against a side, whose biggest strength is their physical style of play.

Ivory Coast are physically good

“I think they have a good mix in their midfield three, with a playmaker, a runner and a stabiliser,” Solbakken said as quoted by FIFA.com.

“They also have two good wingers, a striker that can both keep the ball up and go behind and they have two powerhouses at centre-back.

“Their team is very good, but we are a good team when we play to our best. So, let’s see in four days.

“We have cancelled out their one extra day to rest (by making changes for the France match)  so now we should be on equal terms in terms of physicality, which I see as one of their biggest strengths.”

Ivory Coast booked their spot in the expanded tournament and reached the knockout rounds for the first time in their history. Their historic run featured a 1-0 opening victory over Ecuador.

Meanwhile, Iraq coach Graham Arnold has blamed their heavy 5-0 defeat to Senegal on the first-half red card and mistakes which allowed the Lions of Teranga to seize the opportunity and carry the day.

Iraq were reduced to ten men shortly after falling behind when Rebin Sulaka was deemed to have denied Sadio Mane a clear goalscoring opportunity.

“It was really tough today after that early red card. When you make the mistakes that we had, you get punished at a World Cup,” said Arnold.

“We had an extremely tough group here. We performed well in two of the three matches. It has been an enjoyable journey and hopefully the players will return home with good experiences.

“They have now learned what it takes to play against these types of players. The fans were so loud and so noisy. We are so proud that we have given the fans this opportunity to enjoy the World Cup.”

The Lions of Teranga, who will finish no worse than seventh place among the eight best third-placed teams will face either England, Switzerland, Belgium, Portugal, or Colombia.