Democratic Republic of Congo head coach S\u00e9bastien Desabre learned that his father had died just hours before kick-off of his side\u2019s World Cup last-32 showdown with England, a match in which the underdogs came within touching distance of a famous upset.<\/p>\n
The announcement was made at the conclusion of Desabre\u2019s post-match media briefing. Speaking on behalf of the team, media officer Jerry Kalemo said: \u201cWe announce that the coach has lost his father. Our sincere condolences.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the news delivered, Desabre\u2014who is set to turn 50 next month\u2014reacted with a puzzled expression before replying \u201cthank you\u201d, a response that led to mistaken claims that it was the first time he had heard of the tragedy.<\/p>\n
However, Desabre had already been informed prior to the match in Atlanta. The Congolese took the lead early, remained in front for more than an hour, and then ultimately fell to a 2-1 defeat after Harry Kane struck twice.<\/p>\n
Officials added that Desabre\u2019s father had been unwell for some time, though no additional information was provided about his condition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Democratic Republic of Congo head coach S\u00e9bastien Desabre learned that his father had died just hours before kick-off of his side\u2019s World Cup last-32 showdown with England, a match in which the underdogs came within touching distance of a famous upset. The announcement was made at the conclusion of Desabre\u2019s post-match media briefing. Speaking on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2707,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"Desabre\u2019s Father Death Shocks DRC Before England Clash","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Desabre\u2019s father passed away just hours before DRC\u2019s World Cup last-32 clash with England, as the coach and team faced a tense, em","mma_seo_breadcrumb_text":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_url":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_hide_ui":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_labels":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n