Pakistan produced a spirited performance against a much higher-ranked Côte d’Ivoire side but fell to a 2-0 defeat at the Alassane Outtara Stadium in Abidjan on Thursday, finishing third in the standings.

Coming off a record 8-0 win over Turks and Caicos and a narrow 1-0 loss to Mauritania, Adeel Rizki’s side showed impressive defensive discipline, even after being reduced to 10 players. Facing a team 72 places above them in the FIFA rankings, Pakistan held firm for much of the contest, with Kayla Siddiqi and Isra Khan leading a composed backline that limited the hosts to long-range efforts early on.

Goalkeeper Zeeyana Jivraj delivered a standout performance, repeatedly denying Côte d’Ivoire with crucial saves, while full-backs Anmol Hira and Karissa Jivraj worked tirelessly to cut off attacking threats.

The breakthrough came in the 39th minute when Ami Diallo headed in from a corner. The hosts doubled their lead in the 69th through Habibou Oudraogo, also from a set-piece.

Pakistan’s challenge grew tougher when Anmol was sent off for a goal-line handball, but Zeeyana kept the deficit from widening with a penalty save and several late interventions, capping off a resilient display filled with positives.