Africa Cup of Nations: Challenges aplenty in Equatorial Guinea, reports SSN HQ's Geraint Hughes
Thursday 22 January 2015 12:16, UK
Sky Sports News HQ reporter Geraint Hughes checks in from Equatorial Guinea ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations... with some difficulty...
Covering the Africa Cup of Nations, I was told, would require patience. Something maybe I and many of us lack when working in the UK as we take many things for granted, such as a working phone line, texting and emails.
Suffice to say, I'm finding my experience of working in Bata, the largest city in Equatorial Guinea situated on the west coast mainland, frustrating.
The infrastructure is well, missing. However, it's my job to try every avenue to overcome the obstacles in my way - so don't feel sorry for me. But spare a thought for a couple of the teams here at the Africa Cup of Nations whose preparations are being hindered.
Congo have a generation of players who have never before been to a tournament like this and when they arrived at their hotel in Bata, no one was expecting them. Their manager Claude Le Roy, a Frenchman with vast experience of African football, had never seen such a shambles before.
When they eventually got their rooms, Congo found they were five rooms short so one night two doctors and a physio shared a bed. Imagine England tolerating that?
Add to that, at times they have no running water and there are exposed electricity cables. Congo striker Dominique Malonga, who plays for Hibernian in Scotland, told me he and the other players were just so disappointed.
It's all their first Africa Cup of Nations and, after having a good pre-tournament camp in Senegal, really wanted to put on a show here - especially as they open proceedings against the hosts on Saturday evening.
Malonga was a really nice guy to chat with. He shrugged his shoulders at Congo's predicament, but said now they just had to smile and get on with it.
Tunisia and Burkino Faso have also had problems with their accommodation, but I haven't seen first-hand their situation so it's difficult to report with accuracy. What is clear is what organisers told Sky Sports News HQ last Monday - that this Africa Cup of Nations will have 'imperfections' - is turning out to be accurate.
Once again, CAF General Secretary Hicham El Amrani, on the eve of the 30th edition of the Cup of Nations, asked for his predicament to be understood. When Morocco were removed as hosts and when Equatorial Guinea offered to step in, there were just two choices in front of him. Cancel the tournament or take a last-minute offer which would come with immense challenges.
You feel everyone is suffering!
