Mauritania goes into the African Nations Championships (CHAN) Group A match against Guinea on Sunday, January 21 with a bruised ego.
The defeat against Sudan on Wednesday eliminated Mauritania from the tournament with the East Africans going second on the table with four points.
Their opponent Guinea are also out of the competition having suffered defeat from Morocco and Sudan.
Without doubt the Al-Murabitun have failed to live up to expectations but coach Coretins Martin believes they must pick a win against the Syli Nationale to save their blushes.
“We have been preparing for the game against Guinea like any other game. Our target is the three points as an honour to our fans who have stood behind us through thick and thin,”said Martins during pre-match interview.
“There is nothing at stake but we will play with our all hearts. It won’t be an easy game because Guinea are also aiming to go back with some pride. We had problems with converting opportunities in the first two games, and I’m hoping we will take chances against Guinea.
“Our objective is to win at least a match after suffering losses in all three matches during the maiden CHAN appearance of Mauritania in 2014.
However, if Mauritania displays the same performance from that last game the host could forget about snatching any point as their performance in the second game wasn’t convincing after suffering a 1-0 defeat to Sudan.
Guinea will play without head coach Kanfory Mohamed ‘Lappe’ Bangoura who was fired hours after the team lost to Morocco in their second match of the competition.
The Syli Nationale will be guided by assistant coach Ibrahima Sory Toure in final Group A fixture.
“It is very unfortunate that Kanfory Lappe Bangoura had to be sacked for the team’s disappointing performance in the previous two games. We are not a bad side. The players received the news with shock and have sworn to win against Mauritania in his honour.
“Besides that, we have to win to bow out with our heads high and this is the last chance. After we will go back and prepare for future competitions,”Toure concluded.
