Tom Saintfiet, head coach of Gambia during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations match between Guinea and Gambia at Charles Konan Stadium inYamoussoukro on the 19 January 2024 © Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
Gambia coach Tom Saintfiet remains defiant about their TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations chances despite Friday’s 1-0 defeat to Guinea in Group C.
Speaking after the loss, Saintfiet conceded Guinea were better in the first half before Gambia improved after the break.
“In the first half Guinea were stronger but in the second period we raised our level more,” the Belgian stated.
“I’ll stay positive because we did it against a difficult, quality team like Guinea.”
Saintfiet felt the Gambia created openings and was unfortunate to have a goal disallowed before Guinea’s winner.
“The goal against us was unexpected. I thanked the players because I can’t speak negatively about the team I lead,” he added.
Despite two defeats, Saintfiet refuses to surrender hope for Gambia, saying: “We’re still alive, the situation just got more complicated.”
“We can still qualify with three points in our next game,” insisted the Scorpions’ boss.
Saintfiet identified scoring goals as key to beating Cameroon in their final group match.
“We haven’t scored yet so to win we have to find goals against Cameroon,” he said.
The Belgian reiterated he never called Guinea the group’s weakest side, stating: “The weakest in Group C is Gambia, Guinea are the most dangerous.”
Despite the odds, Saintfiet retains belief his side can pull off a famous upset to reach the AFCON knockouts.
