We Don’t Ask How Many Goals You’ll Concede – Ethiopia’s National Team Coach

“We don’t have a national team that goes around asking, ‘How many goals will you concede to us?’” – Ethiopian National Team Coach

“I personally believe that among the factors influencing us are the things written on social media,” he added.

The Ethiopian national team will play their fifth and sixth 2026 World Cup qualifier matches this coming Friday and Monday against Egypt and Djibouti, respectively.

Before departing for Morocco, where the team will play their matches, the coach, captain, and federation office head held a press conference.

Team captain Aschalew Tamene stated during the press conference that the national team is well-prepared and in good spirits for the upcoming matches. He expressed confidence in the team’s readiness and mentioned that their previous victory over Egypt serves as a motivation for the upcoming games.

Regarding the team’s morale, he said, “We have reviewed the match where we previously defeated Egypt, and that game will serve as an inspiration for us.”

When asked about analyzing the opposing team, he responded, “We don’t analyze the opposing team. Currently, we don’t have a national team that goes around asking, ‘How many goals will you concede to us?’ Whether we win or lose, Egypt has struggled against us in the past. Even when they defeated us 1-0 on the field, we know how we had previously beaten them 2-0 and how we had the upper hand.”

“We don’t have any special analysis for Mo Salah. We don’t say anything extra. We just focus on what football allows us to do. We don’t go into matches overanalyzing the opponent. Even in the matches we’ve lost, they’ve struggled against us. We know Egypt’s history with us, and in the matches where they’ve beaten us, they’ve had to fight until the last minute,” he said.