Ivory Coast international Seri Jean Michel appears to be battling to shake off the frustrations from his botched move to Barcelona.
The Nice midfielder was on the radar of the Blaugrana, who are currently combing Europe to unearth a suitable replacement for departed Neymar.
Seri was already dreaming of landing a fat check and play with the likes of Lionel Messi and Iniesta at the Camp Nou, but just few days ago, Barcelona technical secretary Robert Fernandez revealed that such a deal would not happen and that they had pulled out of the chase.
The 26-year-old player had to leave his base where he was waiting for Barca representatives for talks and travelled to Abidjan to prepare for the Gabon match.
In an interview, he blamed his club for the failed project and said he was brokenhearted.
He is yet to recover from that disappointment, apparently, with his national team coach coach Marc Wilmots confirming the current fragile psychological state of the player.
“He has been really affected by the failed move to Barcelona. He has been calm and quiet, but we are trying to make him get over it,” Wilmots said during a press conference in Abidjan on Tuesday.
“It’s a huge disappointment for him, everybody can understand that. But he is a nice and lively guy and we are hopeful that he will surmount this very soon.
“I spoke to him at the hotel yesterday (Monday) and I can assure you he is getting on fine.
“Physically, he is strong and not injured and I think he can play against Gabon,” he said.
Seri joined the Elephants in 2015 and has been capped 14 times, scoring one goal.
