Senegal fires national football team coach

Published Oct. 24, 2012 3:05 p.m. ET

foxsports

Senegal coach Joseph Koto and assistant Karim Sega Diouf have been fired following the team's failure to qualify for the African Cup of Nations.

Koto and Diouf were sacked ''for unfulfilled targets,'' Senegalese Football Federation president Augustin Senghor said.

Senghor said technical director Mayacine Mar will serve as interim coach.

Senegal lost to Ivory Coast 2-0 on Oct. 13 in Dakar, an African Cup qualifier that had to be abandoned after the 76th minute because of fan violence. Ivory Coast led 6-2 on aggregate.

Already eliminated, Senegal was officially disqualified by the Confederation of African Football.

Senegal President Macky Sall, who was attending a summit in Congo at the time, apologized to Ivory Coast.