Ivory Coast win convincingly but go out

Ivory Coast convincingly beat North Korea 3-0 on Friday, but the win, which could easily have been by a larger margin, was still not enough to prevent the Africans from going out of the World Cup.

Portugal and Brazil's 0-0 draw in the other final Group G match ensured they both qualified for the last 16, rendering the Ivorian result meaningless. North Korea, who lost all three of their games, had already been eliminated.

Despite their exit, Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said he was pleased with his side's performance in what had always looked like one of the tournament's hardest groups.

"They should be very proud of themselves and the country should be very proud of them," he told reporters.

"It's a good team and I think the future belongs to this country ... absolutely. The future for this country, football-wise, is great."

In Image: Ivory Coast goalkeeper Boubacar Barry greets North Korea's Jong Tae Se, left, and North Korea's Choe Kum Chol, right, after the World Cup group G soccer match

Text: Reuters

Images: AP