Cote d'Ivoire boss Emerse Faé called on his team to be totally focused during their last-16 tie against Burkina Faso on Tuesday night at the Africa Cup of Nations.
The Ivorians moved into the knockout stages as winners of Group F following victories over Gabon and Mozambique as well as a draw with Cameroon.
On the eve of the game at the Stade de Marrakech, Faé said he wanted his players to display the same commitment that they showed during the 1-1 stalemate with Cameroon on 28 December in Marrakesh.
"We're going to have to give it 100 percent against Burkina Faso," said the former Ivorian international midfielder.
"We need to use the same ingredients as we used against Cameroon: we need to stay totally focused.
"As soon as the referee blows the whistle, statistics will no longer matter. Both teams want to reach the quarter-finals."
Cote d'Ivoire's path to the knockout stages in Morocco has been more serene than their journey to the last-16 two years ago on home soil.
After a humiliating 4-0 defeat to Equatorial Guinea in the final pool game, Ivorian football federation bosses sacked coach Jean-Louis Gasset and drafted in Faé who was his assistant.
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The new coaching set-up had to wait 48 hours for the rest of the groups to play out to discover whether the hosts could continue in the tournament.
Cote d'Ivoire scraped through as the fourth of the four best third-placed teams.
However, once into the knockout stages, bolstered by the return to full fitness of Simon Adingra and Sébastien Haller, they cut a swathe through the field to claim their third continental crown.
Adingra, judged the best young player at the 2023 event, missed out on selection for the 2025 competition in Morocco and Haller was injured on the eve of the tournament.
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Manchester United's Amad Diallo has emerged as the side's main marksman with two goals during the pool stages.
Faé, though, said he did not want to heap pressure on the 23-year-old. "It's not just the job of the strikers to score," said the 41-year-old.
"Everyone has a role to play. We all have to be pragmatic in front of goal."
Burkina Faso, who are into the knockout stages for the third tournament on the trot, progressed as Group E runners-up.
Head coach Brama Traoré rallied his men with a blunt message. "To be champions, you have to beat the champions. It's a knockout game and we must be prepared on every level."
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Cote d'Ivoire, as defending champions and at 20 places above Burkina Faso in the Fifa rankings, will start the tie as favourites.
"But that tag doesn't mean a thing," said Faé. "That's for people placing bets. Most of the games in the last-16 have been very close. Burkina Faso are a good side, they haven't got to this stage by chance.
"They are going to cause us problems. We have to take them seriously because they are capable of eliminating us."
The winner of the tie will take on Egypt on 10 January at the Stade Adrar in Agadir.
