Cédric Bakambu pleasantly surprised by the world-class conditions in San Pedro

DR Congo attacker, Cedric Bakambu expressed his great satisfaction with the world-class conditions provided by CAF at the AFCON City in San Pedro where they are based for their Group F fixtures ahead of their TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 campaign.

Bakambu, who plies his trade for Galatasaray in Turkey, arrived on Friday at the newly built facility that boasts quality facilities to host African stars.

“We were very well received whether in Abidjan or San Pedro. We were pleasantly surprised by the conditions in which we were received. The accommodation is great, as are the grounds. We have everything to compete better,” said Bakambu.

With DR Congo absent from the 2021 edition, Bakambu hopes to make up for lost time.

“We have no limit. In football everything is possible. We are already eager to go because of our absence two years ago. So, we arrive with a lot of ambition, and I hope that it will come to fruition on the ground,” he added.

DR Congo finds itself in tough Group F with Morocco, Zambia and Tanzania, a group the striker says he is not stressing too much about.

“We don’t look too much at the other opponents. We focus on us. We know that we had a difficult journey in the qualifiers and that should serve as a lesson for us to perform in this competition and I have confidence in my teammates,” he assured.

The Leopards will begin their journey in this CAN CAF TotalEnergies, Côte d'Ivoire 2023 against Zambia on 17 January before facing Morocco on the 21st at the Laurent Pokou Stadium in San Pedro.

Sébastien Desabre's men will then finish their group stages in Korhogo against Tanzania on 24 January.

“We want to start the competition with a lot of seriousness, ambition, rigor and desire. We’re going to have to have fun. It’s football, we’re going to have to play and I hope we live up to this challenge,” concluded Bakambu.