Odilon Kossounou: Ivory Coast Defender Breaks Silence After Red Card Rules Him Out of Semi Final

• Odilon Kossounou has reacted to his red card against Mali
• The Ivory Coast defender will miss the game against DRC
• The centre-back is expected to return for the last game

Ivory Coast defender, Odilon Kossounou, will miss the Africa Cup of Nations semi-final match against DR Congo on Wednesday following his red card in the Mali game.

The Bayer Leverkusen player was sent off in the first half of the quarter-final clash against the Eagles after twice impeding winger Lassine Sinayoko.

Despite playing most of the game with a man down, the AFCON hosts came from a goal down to beat Mali in a dramatic encounter at the Stade de Bouake.

Kossounou took to social media to apologise to fans of the Ivorian national team while applauding the brave efforts of his teammates.

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"I would like to apologize to the Ivorian people as well as my teammates for this error during the match. This was not voluntary, and I am sorry to have left my team. I am proud of this group, the warriors who fought until the last minute," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

"We will all be united behind the Ivorian national team for the next match! Ivorian people, thank you for your unconditional support," he added.

Koussounou could return to the line-up for the last game at the competition for Ivory Coast, either in the final or in the third-place play-off, per Sky Sports.

Ivory Coast beat Mali to reach semis

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that host nation Ivory Coast came from a goal down to beat Mali in an exhilarating encounter in the quarter-final of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Boauke.

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A late back-heel goal by Oumar Diakite in added time at the end of extra time gave the Elephants a 2-1 win over Mali on Saturday night.

Ivory Coast were reduced to 10 men after a red card to Odilon Kossounou at the end of the first half, and the Ivorians fell behind in the second half to a Nene Dorgeles goal only for Simon Adingra to equalise in the 90th minute.