Aston Villa forward Bertrand Traore is targeting victory when Burkina Faso take on Tunisia in their Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final clash at the Roumde Adija stadium, Garoua on Saturday (today), PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The Stallions held off a gallant fightback from 10-man Gabon to advance with a 7-6 victory on penalties after a 1-1 draw in their last-16 tie in Limbe on Sunday and Traore, who made amends with a cool finish in the 28th minute after missing a penalty in the 11th minute, says they are ready to make their country proud amid the unrest back in Ouagadougou.
A military coup was staged in Ouagadougou, the Burkina Faso capital on Monday, which dampened the spirit of the Stallions as they prepared to face Tunisia today.
The army’s removal and detention of President Roch Kabore after two days of unrest sparked fears in the Stallions camp ahead of their fixture against the Carthage Eagles but Traore says the players are eager to put smiles on the faces of Burkinabe fans.
“We are trying our best to get ready for the game,” he told PUNCH Sports Extra.
“We are staying focused ahead of the next game against Tunisia despite all the happenings back home because we are happy to be at this stage of the competition.
“As a group, we have players that are ready to make our country proud.
“After advancing to this stage, anything is possible, we will continue to take it game after game, our last game was a victory against Gabon, and now the target will be a win against Tunisia. We want to win and we will try everything to achieve the needed result.”
Burkina Faso finished as runners-up at the 2013 Nations Cup and third place in 2017.
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