Togo have officially left the African Cup of Nations in Angola following Friday’s horrific attack on their team bus by terrorists in the enclave of Cabinda. The events saw the deaths of the bus driver, a journalist, and the assistant manager of the Togolese national team, with a few players currently recovering from gunshot wounds.
The announcement by a CAF official that they are ‘disqualified’ from the tournament ends several days of indecision, with the squad, captained by Emmanuel Adebayor, choosing to leave Angola after the shock of the events they had witnessed. Soon, though, they reversed their decision to try and win in memory of the fatalities, before their government intervened and brought them home. Attempts by the team to plead their case were overturned, and the saga finally ended with the passing of the scheduled kick-off time of their first group game on Monday. Adebayor has been given ‘compassionate leave’ by Manchester City, and he will play for them again once he recovers from the shock.
Group B, also containing Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Burkina Faso will now go ahead without Togo, with the top two teams advancing to the quarter-finals.
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