The defender of Cote d’Ivoire, Kolo Toure, has said that his team will have to improve its defense if it has to do well against the top teams. Toure gave this statement after the victory of Cote d’Ivoire over Egypt in a friendly match played on Monday. Cote d’Ivoire won that match by 4-2.

Gervinho scored a couple of goals, while, Didier Ya Konan and Lacina Traore scored one goal each to secure the victory of Cote d’Ivoire.

Talking to the reporters after the match, Toure said, “Although, we managed to defeat them by a profound margin but, we still have a lot of issues to be sorted out. I don’t think our defenders performed that well in the match. There were a lot of defensive errors committed and those could prove to be costly when we will play tougher opposition.”

“We need to correct our defensive problems as soon as possible. In this match, we got away with those mistakes, but, it’s not going to be the case in big tournaments.”
When asked if this victory has boosted the confidence of the team before the Nations Cup, Toure said, “Yes off course. Nations Cup is a big tournament for us and we need to go into that tournament backing ourselves. This victory has certainly given us the confidence that we needed before such a tournament.”

When asked about the fitness of his brother Yaya Toure who sat on the bench in the match against Egypt, Kolo Toure said, “He is just a bit ill and he didn’t participate in the training session before the match. With important matches coming up, the manager decided to give him a bit for rest. I am sure he will be fit for the upcoming matches.”