World Cup 2026: Amad Diallo reacts to Ivory Coast’s painful exit after Norway defeat

Amad Diallo has expressed deep disappointment after Ivory Coast were eliminated from the 2026 World Cup following a dramatic 2–1 defeat to Norway in the Round of 32.

The Manchester United winger came off the bench and scored Ivory Coast’s equaliser in the 74th minute, but Erling Haaland struck late to send Norway through to the Round of 16.

Norway will now face Brazil national football team in the next round next Sunday.

“We regret going out in this way”

Speaking to FIFA’s official website after the match, Diallo admitted the defeat was difficult to accept given the quality within the Ivory Coast squad.

“We are very disappointed to lose because we know we have many outstanding players who are capable of changing the course of a match at any moment,” Diallo said.

He added:

“We were playing against a team with exceptional players, but we conceded a goal at the end of the match, and we regret going out in this way.”

Learning experience for Ivory Coast’s new generation

Diallo also described the tournament as an important learning experience for the current Ivory Coast generation, many of whom were playing in their first World Cup.

“But we will benefit from this tournament, as it is the first participation of our generation in the World Cup,” he explained.

Pride mixed with disappointment

In further comments reported by Foot Mercato, the winger said the entire country had believed in the squad’s potential during the tournament.

“All Ivorians are disappointed. They believed in our team, and in this generation. This is an experience we learn from. We faced a team of high quality.”

Despite the elimination, Diallo insisted there were still positives to take from the campaign.

“We are also proud of what we achieved, and we will learn from our mistakes and come back stronger.”

“I believed in this generation”

Diallo acknowledged that Norway’s winning goal could have been defended better and admitted the team had hoped to progress much further in the competition.

“The second goal was easy for them; we could have defended better. The overall result is positive, but also negative.”

He continued:

“We made history; we qualified from the group stage. But it’s also negative because I believed in this generation.”

The Manchester United forward ended by stressing how painful the early exit felt for both the players and supporters.

“I thought we could go far, and seeing us eliminated in the round of 32 is a huge disappointment for Ivory Coast. We had a lot of quality in the team.”