Arsenal's very own attacking enigma Gervinho, who can be brilliant on one day and an abject failure the next, has been talking about his childhood in the Ivory Coast and how football has changed his life.
Arsene Wenger has explained how importance confidence is to the Ivorian's game and Gervinho himself has now showed his emotional side.
Is time up for the Ivory Coast's Golden Generation?
By Peter Sharland
In England, there is a general acceptance that we recently experienced a golden generation of talented footballers that never produced on the world stage.
I had to do a double take when I saw this story in the newspaper this morning, then I checked the date to see if it was April Fool's Day, although that does not necessarily the story true. Apparently, the Turkish champions Galatasaray want to sign the Arsenal and Ivory Coast forward Gervinho in the summer, and they are willing to pay £12 million for the privilege.
Through Ryu's Lens: The Champions League welcomes back Didier
The last time Didier Drogba kicked a ball in the Champions League, it was a cool penalty that allowed Chelsea to win the competition for the first time in the club's history.
The Ivory Coast's so-called Golden Generation has once again failed to live up to the expectations of football betting news pundits after crashing out of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations to unfancied Nigeria. The Elephants, spearheaded by legendary striker, Didier Drogba, struggled to puncture a resolute Nigerian defence that held off Ivory Coast's formidable strike force just enough to earn a 2-1 victory in the Afcon quarter-finals.
Didier Drogba of Ivory Coast (Photo by Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images/Getty Images)
Having already completed the highly coveted transfer of Wesley Sneijder this January, Turkish giants Galatasaray looked to have pulled off another major coup when they announced the signing of former Chelsea legend and then Shanghai Shenhua striker Didier Drogba on an 18-month deal according to ESPN and Drogba's player agency's official Twitter account:
Drogba said through his representatives, Sports PR Company, on Twitter:
Didier @fondationdrogbasaid "the opportunity to play for this great club was an offer that I could not turn down.
Didier Drogba of Ivory Coast-Photo by Duif du Toit / Gallo Images/Getty Images
Galatasaray made a massive splash with their signing of Wesley Sneijder earlier in the month. However, in many ways they have truly cemented themselves as a massive contender in the UEFA Champions League with the signing of former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba on an 18-month loan deal from Shanghai Shenua according to ESPN.
There is plenty about the 2013 African Cup of Nations to inspire déj vu.
For one thing, thanks to the Confederation of African Football's choice to flip the tournament from even years to odd, barely 11 months will have passed from the closing of the 2012 event to this year's kickoff.
Cheick Tiote will be traveling back to Tyneside this week, after he played the full game for the Ivory Coast in their 3-0 win against Gambia on Saturday inWorldCup qualifying, with goals from Wilfried Bony, Yaya Toure and Salomon Kalou. Cheick Tiote we still have work to do Their next qualifying game is in [.
22-year old Godfrey Oboabona will not be totally unheard of at Arsenal. The centre back plays for Sunshine Stars FC and the Nigerian national team. He played the full 90 minutes in direct opposition to the Arsenal striker Gervinho as the Ivory Coast were knocked out of the African Cup of Nations at the quarter-final stage.
Ivory Coast striker Wilfried Bony could spurn interest from West Ham and Liverpool and move to Italy, according to his agent. The 24-year-old is hot property at the moment having bagged 36 league goals for Dutch side Twente since the start of last season. He has been heavily linked with several Russian clubs this month, but he has his admirers in England, with West Ham and Liverpool believed to be chasing his signature.
Arsenal fans may find this hard to believe, but Gervinho just won the first AFCON match for his country, the Ivory Coast. He was also, for me, a good contender for man of the match, along with Yaya Toure. I wonder if a good run of performances in the competition could renew his conference and give him the impetus to get his Arsenal career back on track.
According to Sky Sports, current Lille player and ex-Chelsea man Salomon Kalou has announced both Liverpool and West Ham are in search of his signature this January. Last summer, Kalou made his exit from Stamford Bridge to French side Lille on a free transfer and it seems as if he misses Premier League football.
The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations finished last weekend. All of the players are back with their respective clubs, their focus now on club glory rather than on the international arena. It's a good time to take a short look back at some of the statistics that came out of this enthralling tournament. Perhaps the biggest story of this years Africa Cup of Nations was the failure of Ivory Coast's "golden" generation to lift the trophy that had almost seemed their birthright.
Matt Pentz reminds us it's getting close at the Africa Cup of Nations
The 2013 African Cup of Nations has been whittled down to four.
In theory, the final four is perfectly balanced: The runaway favorite (Ghana), the resurgent challenger (Nigeria), the sentimental dark horse (Mali) and the outsider (Burkina Faso).
With the Africa Cup of Nations 2013 almost here I thought I'd take a look at the players who make up the sixteen squads taking part in the competition. Some of the graphics are interactive, so feel free to have a click around.
The above graphic was made with infogr.am and the data came from the ever reliable wikipedia.
African Cup of Nations review: Nigeria crowned kings of the continent - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
The African Cup of Nations came to a dramatic close on Sunday, with Nigeria ending a 19-year drought at the competition to lift the winner's trophy for the third time in their history with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Burkina Faso.
Nigeria's Africa Cup of Nations squad will be offered a week of free sex if they bring the trophy home. An organisation representing the country's sex workers says Chelsea star Victor Moses and his team-mates will be entitled to freebies for a week providing they win the tournament. Jessica Elvis, national secretary of the [.
In the last years the Ivory Coast has been one of the most hyped African teams. And with reason: headed by Didier Drogba the team has one of the strongest teams of experienced players in the best European leagues. But again and again they have disappointed. South Africa 2013 has been no exception. Today they lost 2-1 in the quarterfinals against a Nigeria that has been criticized throughout the
Ivory Coast vs Nigeria AFCON 2013 Highlights Tiote Emenike Mba Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter
Ivory Coast vs Nigeria AFCON 2013 Highlights Tiote Emenike Mba Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter Ivory Coast vs Nigeria 2013 ( Cote d'Ivoire Super Eagles VIDEO BELOW) Final score and result:- Ivory Coast vs Nigeria 1-2 ( Tiote/ Emenike, Mba) Royal Bakofeng Stadium, Rustenburg- Africa Cup of [.
Cheick Tiote will be on his way home from South Africa after the Ivory Coast the favorites were beaten 2-1 by Nigeria in the quarter finals of the African Cup Of Nations (AFCON) in Rutenbyurg Soutyh Africa. Emmanuel Emenike gave Nigeria the lead after 43 minutes with a long range shot that was [...]
With the time difference I have not had much chance to watch the Africa Cup of Nations. A couple of days ago I saw Nigeria's two penalty victory against Ethiopia in Group C that put the giants in the next round. Nigeria is eager for a success that has eluded the African giants for years, but their team is not looking that strong.
The Nature of Ivory Coast - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Ivory Coast topped the Group D with two wins and a draw. A late winner by Gervinho against Togo in their opening fixture saw them win 2-1. In their second game, they faced Tunisia; the Ivorians won 3-0. In their final group game, they made a sensational come back from 2-0 down to draw level with Alegeria.
Algeria vs Ivory Coast AFCON 2013 Highlights 2-2 Feghouli Penalty Soudani Drogba Wilfried Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter
Algeria vs Ivory Coast AFCON 2013 Highlights 2-2 Feghouli Penalty Soudani Drogba Wilfried Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger.
Why Galatasaray is the right move for Drogba - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Turkish club Galatasaray have reached a deal to sign Didier Drogba following his short stint with Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua.
The striker who is currently serving duty for his national team at the African Cup of Nations has agreed to an 18-month deal, as confirmed by the club on its website.
Ivory Coast vs Tunisia CAN 2013 Highlights 3-0 Gervinho Toure Ya Konan Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter
Ivory Coast vs Tunisia CAN 2013 Highlights 3-0 Gervinho Toure Ya Konan Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter Ivory Coast vs Tunisia 2013 ( Cote d'Ivoire Tunisie VIDEO BELOW) Final score and result:- Ivory Coast vs Tunisie 3-0 ( Gervinho, Yaya Toure, Didier Ya Konan) Royal Bakofeng Stadium, [.
I have unfortunately not had much chance of watching the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa. Not just because I miss the vuvuzelas, but also because of the great teams playing! A few days ago I managed to watch a shaky Ivory Coast side defeat Togo 2-1 on a late goal by Gervinho. While Togo had deserved better, the Ivorians must surely up their game if they are not to be disappointed
Ivory Coast vs Togo 2013 2-1 African Cup of Nations Highlights Yaya Toure Gervinho Ayite Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter
Ivory Coast vs Togo 2013 2-1 African Cup of Nations Highlights Yaya Toure Gervinho Ayite Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger.
Too many African Cup of Nations tournaments will drive a player to distraction. The back-to-back competitions seem to have convinced several Ivory Coast players that they need to change their names in order to keep things fresh. Clearly jealous of team-mate Gervinho faux-Brazilian nickname, a couple of former Premier League players have rebranded themselves.
Win Three African Cup of Nations 2013 Home Shirts - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
Soccerlens has teamed up with Puma, the official supplier to the African Cup of Nations, to offer one lucky fan a chance to win three official home shirts from Puma-sponsored African nations.
Capturing the nature of the African Cup of Nations - originally posted on Soccerlens.com
The African Cup of Nations has kicked off and even though Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, etc. are being touted as the usual favourites. But the nature of the competition is such that any of the participants can pull off a shock win.
Ivory Coast vs Egypt 4-2 Highlights 2013 Friendly Traore Ya Konan Gedo Aboutrika Gervinho Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger. Follow Soccer Blogger on Twitter
Ivory Coast vs Egypt 4-2 Highlights 2013 Friendly Traore Ya Konan Gedo Aboutrika Gervinho Goals Video is a post from Soccer Blogger.
Arsenal are entering an absolutely crucial stage of the season, and Arsene Wenger has said that the next few games will define our season. With matches coming thick and fast in three competitions, the depth of the squad could be of vital importance in the coming weeks, and that is why I feel that the game against Blackburn Rovers today is the perfect one to bring back the Ivorian international forward Gervinho.
Well, that was kind of a rough start to things yesterday. The U.S. briefly, ever so briefly, had victory in its sights before conceding an equalizing goal and, as the game neared its end, a game-winner to Honduras. And yes I know, it is hard to win on the road in CONCACAF and it is too soon to panic, but doesn't it hurt a little to be the only team that lost yesterday?
For the fourth and final competition in our bumper AfCoN shirt giveaway series, Pies have once again teamed up with PUMA® (the Official Fan Supplier to the Orange African Cup of Nations)to offer one lucky fan the chance to win the official replica home shirt of the Ivory Coast look at it's orangey/elephanty goodness!
The Sunday Telegraph is reporting that Newcastle are closing in on the £12M transfer of Vitesse striker Wilfried Bony. The Ivory Coast International joined the Dutch club in 2011 from Sparta Prague, and he is one of the in-form strikers in Holland having scoring 22 goals in 24 appearances in all competitions for Vitesse this [.
Welcome to Offbeat Wednesday, your weekly dose of football gossip! This week, get inside Mario Balotelli's home in Manchester, watch the Ivory Coast squad poking fun at the 'handsome' Gervinho, congratulate the Piques on the birth of their baby son, Peter Crouch visits the dentist and Neymar poses with a bouquet of flowers!
Via The Shin Guardian There is plenty about the 2013 African Cup of Nations to inspire déj vu.
For one thing, thanks to the Confederation of African Football's choice to flip the tournament from even years to odd, barely 11 months will have passed from the closing of the 2012 event to this year's kickoff.
In January, football fans from around the world will once again witness the best nations in Africa competing for the illustrious 2013 Africa Cup of Nations trophy.
Sixteen teams from the second largest continent will participate in what could be regarded as the most underrated competition in international football.
