Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.
Amad Diallo believes Norway’s winner against Ivory Coast in their World Cup round of 32 tie “was too easy”.
Erling Haaland scored an 86th-minute winner for Norway as they triumphed 2-1 at Dallas Stadium, sending the Elephants home despite Amad’s impressive second-half equaliser.
Ivory Coast are the fourth successive African nation to lose their first ever World Cup knockout stage game, after Ghana in 2006 (0-3 v Brazil), Algeria in 2014 (1-2 v Germany), and South Africa this year (0-1 v Canada).
Amad became only the third player to score twice as a substitute at a single World Cup for an African nation, after Roger Milla for Cameroon in 1990 (four) and Pape Gueye for Senegal this year (two).
The Manchester United winger was disappointed with how his side conceded their second goal, which came when Oscar Bobb played Patrick Berg into the box, with the latter squaring to the unmarked Haaland for a simple tap-in.
“The second goal was too easy from our point of view,” Amad told reporters.
“We gave Erling Haaland too much space, and when you leave a striker of that calibre unmarked, you pay for it in the end.
“Norway are a very good team with a lot of quality, and if you leave a player like Haaland alone in a game like this, in a moment like this, it’s very difficult.
“That’s our biggest regret. If you give him a little bit of space, he’ll punish you, and that’s exactly what happened.
“Erling doesn’t need any introduction, everyone knows the kind of player he is, he’s a world-class player.
“He found the space, he scored, and they won. He’s having a fantastic World Cup so far, and I wish him and Norway all the very best.”
L’aventure s’arrête ici pour nos Éléphants
Merci à tous pour votre soutien tout au long de cette Coupe du Monde. #ElephantsEnMarche #TousDerriereLesElephants #CDM2026 pic.twitter.com/XXqaCEz4dK
— Équipe Nationale de Football Cote d’Ivoire (@equipenatciv) July 1, 2026
Franck Kessie, meanwhile, admitted he is considering his future with the national team.
The Ivory Coast captain scored against Germany in the group stage and played all but 13 minutes of the team’s campaign.
“It’s difficult to make a decision in the heat of the moment, especially after such a disappointment,” said Kessie.
“It’s like being on a boat that’s sinking at the moment. As captain of the ship, you don’t abandon it while it’s going down. Any decisions will come later.
“It’s been a long season, we’re only finishing now. We’ll take some time to rest, and then the future will reveal itself.”
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