Man United star Amad reacts to beating Drogba, Kalou to Ivory Coast World Cup record

Manchester United winger Amad Diallo expressed ultimate pride after coming off the substitutes' bench to secure a dramatic 1-0 opening victory for the Ivory Coast against Ecuador at the World Cup.

The technical forward produced an iconic individual moment to instantly write his name into the historical record books of African football.

The explosive forward completely rewrote Ivorian tournament history in the 90th minute of play by drifting inside the penalty box to smash home a clinical low strike, making him the nation's youngest-ever goalscorer in the competition at just 23 years and 11 months old.

The dynamic winner successfully eclipsed the previous national milestones established by legendary frontman Didier Drogba, who opened his tally at 30 years old, and Salomon Kalou, who struck against North Korea in 2010 aged 24 years and 10 months.

Speaking to digital sports streaming service DAZN directly on the pitch, a visibly thrilled Amad Diallo said, "Absolutely. We came here to make history for all of us, and we were proud and happy after our result against France, we got the victory. There are two of matches left to win."

The massive opening night triumph carried immense significance for Les Éléphants as it simultaneously marked the federation's very first victory on the global stage since the 2014 finals in Brazil, ending a painful twelve-year tournament drought.

Furthermore, the African powerhouse successfully snapped Ecuador's historic twenty-two-match undefeated streak across all international competitions, completely wide-opening the competitive workflow of Group E.

These crucial three points place the Ivorian squad in a strong position to advance to the knockout phase, immediately shifting their focus to maintaining this defensive solidity ahead of upcoming group stage challenges against heavyweights Germany and Curaçao, Germany's opening-round victims.