The friendly ended 0-1 after Alban Lafont’s odd mishap in the final seconds of play.
It was the evening’s marquee clash in Africa, with Ivory Coast hosting Cameroon at Abidjan’s Alassane Ouattara stadium. After two CAN‑2027 qualifiers wins (2-0 over Ghana and 2-0 over Somalia), the Elephants suffered their first defeat since Hervé Renard took charge this summer.
Forgotten or misunderstood? In my view, the gaffe cost the Elephants dearly. Will Lafont’s confidence survive this mishap?
Cameroon struck early in the second half, Bil Nsongo (47’) netting for Deportivo La Corogne’s youngster. Beyond the loss, Renard and Pagou used the game to reshuffle the roster, fielding regular substitutes, especially in goal. Lafont got the nod for Ivory Coast.
Lafont, the former Nantes keeper, largely performed well but drew attention for a bizarre error in the fourth minute of added time when he stepped out of his box and grabbed the ball by hand during a long Cameroonian clearance (see video from 2:32:36).
Was it a simple lapse, or did he think the referee had blown for a foul on the Elephants? The blunder gave Cameroon a perfectly placed free‑kick, and the referee promptly ended the match afterward.
At 27, Lafont now plies his trade with Amedspor, the surprise league‑leading side in Turkey after six rounds, having joined from Nantes this summer.