It was just the perfect football fairytale. Victory clutched from the jaws of defeat. The winning goalscorer firing his side to glory 18 months after a cancer diagnosis. The victorious manager farcically appointed after his predecessor was sacked mid-tournament.

The Ivory Coast weren't even supposed to be here. A 4-0 hammering by Equatorial Guinea, the 88th best team in the world, ended the hosts' group stage in such humiliation coach Jean-Louis Gasset was sent packing before their fate was decided.

It was only August 2022 when the 29-year-old striker was admitted to hospital with testicular cancer, weeks after signing for Borussia Dortmund. It took two surgeries, four cycles of chemotherapy and eight months away from football before he was eventually fit enough to return last January.

He had played down his recovery as "challenging" ahead of the final but even then admitted to the room of journalists, "given what has happened over the last few months, it's great to be here in front of you."

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