DR Congo coach Sébastien Desabre’s historic journey with the team to the FIFA World Cup knockouts ended on a sombre note after their 1-2 defeat to England on Wednesday, when an abrupt announcement of his father’s death in the post-match press conference left him momentarily in shock.
Having led Congo to their first World Cup qualification since 1974, Desabre had overseen their progress through a tough Group J that included Portugal and Colombia. The story was beginning to bloom further when Brian Cipenga’s seventh-minute strike stunned England, who had to scramble back to victory late in the second-half thanks to twin strikes from Harry Kane.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Desabre was left in shock when the media officer interjected towards the end and announced the coach’s bereavement.
“Thank you but we are announcing that the coach has lost his father,” the media officer announced in French.
“So sincere condolences,” he added before concluding the press conference.
While it is unclear about when exactly did Desabre learn of his personal loss, but the 49-year-old appeared shocked by the public announcement from the media officer. The Frenchman, who has been charge of the national side for the last side, added a humble “merci” – ‘thank you’ before exiting the room.
Despite the tragedy, Desabre had appeared to reflect on Congo’s inspirational journey with composure.
“We are more proud than disappointed. We are disappointed to be leaving the World Cup of course but we scored five goals in the tournament and played much higher-ranked teams and managed good results,” he told reporters.
“We managed to corner England but they reacted and that is the capacity of these big teams. It took the best striker in the world to save them and that’s what happens against these big nations. We did what we could, we were close to winning but it can also been seen as a victory of sorts for us.”