New coach Cesare Prandelli lost his first match on Tuesday as Italy suffered a 1-0 loss to Cote d'Ivoire in a friendly.

Defender Kolo Toure headed in the only goal in the 55th minute. Marco Motta should have scored for Italy in the 47th minute but his shot hit the post.

"There was determination and the will to perform," Prandelli said. "We must work on this and go past the mere enthusiasm. We must find quality through our game.

"At the moment, the players aren't in great form, so you cannot ask them to put great pressure on opponents, but I saw good signals."