The Ivorian Football Federation has initiated a move to loan Les Bleues manager Hervé Renard until the end of the ongoing 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in the country.
Renard is no stranger to Ivorian and African football, having previously coached the Zambian, Moroccan, and Ivorian national teams and becoming the first coach to win two Africa Cup of Nations with different countries, Zambia (2012) and Ivory Coast (2015), respectively.
The host nation is currently without a head coach following the sack of Jean-Louis Gasset after the country fell to a 4-0 defeat to Equatorial Guinea in their last group-stage match in the competition.
Chronicle NG reports that interim coach Emerse Faé is currently in charge of Les Éléphants.
According to L’Équipe, the Ivorian FA has contacted its counterpart, the French Football Federation (FFF), to loan Renard, who is the current coach of the France women’s national team.
It also states that the deal is not to take the 55-year-old away from the women’s team, as he’s under contract until the Olympic Games in August 2024, but to bring him on board for a short period.
Ivory Coast qualified as one of the four best losers with 3 points. The Elephants won just one game, losing the other two.
Ivory Coast faces a tough task as they face one of the tournament’s favourites, Senegal, in their round-of-16 game at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium, Yamoussoukro, on Monday, January 29.
