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A qualifier was stopped yesterday in Bamako, Mali, when fans rioted following a go-ahead goal by Togo in the 90th minute. Fans blocked a main road with flaming tires and smashed car windows after they invaded the field. Police fired tear gas as protesters descended on the capital's main African Unity Avenue and screamed about the play of Mali's top players. "Give us Frederic Kanoute and Mamadou Bakayoko!" they demanded. "We're going to kill them!" Kanoute plays for Tottenham Hotspur in England and Bakayoko for Nantes in France. Thousands of fans, joined by residents who were not at the match, marched to the city center, setting up barricades of burning tires, and throwing rocks and stones at traffic lights, billboards and vehicles. The window of Bamako's biggest bakery, the Patisserie Almandine, was smashed and the store was looted. One man was eating a cream cake as he carted a chair away on his head. Cell phones, money, and cameras were stolen from passers-by. Presidential spokesman Seydou Sissouma said, "I understand the people's disappointment, but nothing justifies such acts." He said he had heard of no injuries, and that all the soccer players had been "secured" under guard. |
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| Tottenham striker Fredi Kanoute is considering his international future with Mali after surviving "the scariest experience of his career". "I don't know if I will play for Mali again. I have my family to think about," he said. "I was very frightened. At no stage did I actually think I would die but it was a seriously dangerous situation for all of us," he said. "I'm just relieved to be back. It was a very scary experience, the worst I've had to deal with in my entire career. "I don't think I did anything to deserve being singled out. I had missed a couple of chances but those were made by me. I didn't miss any easy opportunities to score." |