Didier Drogba has spoken of his sadness after 19 Ivory Coast fans died during the Malawi match.
Blues striker admits accident puts football into perspective
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has spoken of his sadness after at least 19 supporters died during the Ivory Coast's 5-0 win over Malawi.
The incident took place before the World Cup qualifier at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny stadium when a wall collapsed causing panic amongst the fans.
The situation was said to have been worsened by the fact that 50,000 fans were in and around the 35,000 capacity ground in Abidjan.
Drogba, who scored twice in the match, highlighted that the incident, where at least 135 people were also injured, put football into perspective.
"I am disappointed by what happened, it is hard to take," he told
Skysports.com.
"Football is nothing, you are talking about the death of 19 people, it is hard to take, when things like that happen it makes you realise how much people care about their country, their team.
"Peace to them it is sad."
The 31-year-old's team-mate for both club and country Salomon Kalou, who also scored in the match, echoed his sentiments.
"I am disappointed, my thoughts are with their families, peace to them," he added.
Calls for calm
Meanwhile, the president of the Ivory Coast Football Federation Jacques Anouma emphasised the need to remain calm in the aftermath of the tragic incident.
"We can only deplore what happened," he told Ivory Coast newspaper
Le Patriote.
"We are obliged to wait until the end of the inquiries that the Minister of Security himself has ordered so that we know what happened.
"We really can't understand what happened at a match where everyone was warned it was a sell-out.
"We are really sorry. We give our condolences to the families of the victims and we wish a speedy recovery to the injured.
"What I ask of all Ivorians is not to start useless arguments, but to ensure that these kind of things don't happen again.
"It's sad. I'm deeply upset."
