Cameroon was very confident - Cheick Oumar Diabaté

The assistant coach of the Mena of Niger has revealed the little secrets highlighted by the technical supervision of his selection to pull a "virgin" draw against Cameroon on her facilities, during a press conference.

"If we made the analysis of two meetings in Niamey, it has been decentralized to the end of the first half. This afternoon, we were mentally prepared to not be ridiculed. We had to save the honour. This is what prompted us to play and show that at Niamey it was a misstep, and here we could compete with this team of Cameroon. Overall, we have to say they wanted to wet the shirt because the score did not really reflect the reality of the last game.

You should not make mistakes to give the opponent a stick to hit us. We tightened the ranks to avoid the first goal because it was going to cost us much and would have become like the scenario in Niamey. It was necessary to remain lucid. Failing was not an option, you had to back up our database to perform because we knew that the opponent is very safe.

On the ground, when not taking any chances, it is always a satisfaction. In reality, this is not the score that interests us. It is what we are preparing that is important. We are preparing the team because it has young players. We will put in place a strategy for the next two or three years; we would get to the level of the other football nations."