Eric Bailly speaks out after Tokyo 2020 elimination

Manchester United and Ivory Coast defender Eric Bailly has spoken out after being eliminated from this summer’s Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Bailly was one of three overage players to be picked in the Ivory Coast squad, with the football tournament consisting of U23 teams.

Bailly started all four of Ivory Coast’s fixtures, starring as the senior defender in their backline through their impressive group stage showing. Ivory Coast, or ‘The Elephants’, finished second in their group behind Brazil, setting up a mouthwatering tie against Spain in the quarter-finals.

The 27-year-old scored the opening goal of the encounter but was eventually comfortably beaten by an exciting Spain side, despite taking a 2-1 lead in the first minute of stoppage time. Amad, who started the first two games against Saudi Arabia and Brazil, was a second-half substitution.