Pablo Ganet Comitre of Equatorial Guinea during the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Afcon Finals Equatorial Guinea Press Conference at Stade Omnisports de Limbe in Limbe, Cameroon on 25 January 2022 ©Fareed Kotb/BackpagePix
Friday Jan 28, 2022. 15:00
Equatorial Guinea midfielder Pablo Ganet admits they might not have any big-name players, but teamwork is what makes them tick.
The National Thunder are making just their third appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations, having co-hosted the 2012 edition and three years later as hosts.
Juan Micha’s side caused another upset on Wednesday when they beat Mali 6-5 on penalties in the round of 16, having already claimed the big scalp of defending champions Algeria during the group stages.
Next up is a quarter-final tie against one of the tournament favourites, Senegal, on Sunday, and Ganet is hoping the work ethic his team has shown in their first four matches will continue to bring success.
“We are a small country. We don’t have a star – our star is the team,” the Real Murcia midfielder said after the victory over the Eagles.
“If they respect us, okay. If they didn’t respect us it is up to them, but we showed our value. We played with our heads.
“I am so happy, I don’t know in English how (to say) tears of emotion. I feel really happy, but not about me, but as a team because we played as a team and it is in our power.”
Commenting on the game itself, he added: “In the first half, I have to be honest, I think they played better. But step by step we got better and I think in extra time we played even better than them.
“I don’t think they expected that and when they wanted to react it was too late. But Mali is a big team and in the future they can go far.”
