Caf to probe attacks

Fifteen fans were also injured after the African Nations Cup qualifier that saw hosts Togo bow out of the continental competition following a 2-0 defeat.

CAF have placed the Group Nine match official’s reports on the agenda of its organising committee meeting scheduled for Accra, Ghana on Thursday.

Spanish-based striker Frederic Kanoute and Stoke City’s Mamady Sidibe were both attacked at the end of the game and suffered injuries, according to Mali officials.

Sidibe was cut on the arm after an attack by a spectator while Kanoute was kicked in the legs.

Mali coach Jean Francois Jodar told the French newspaper L’Equipe: “It was like a battle field. The players had to seek safety in the change room and there was blood everywhere.”

Mali Football federation president Salif Keita added 15 supporters were injured after being attacked at the end of the match. Togo reports said several were hospitalised in Lome.

The incident mirrored similar scenes in the Malian capital Bamako two years ago, when Togo won 2-1 away in a 2006 World Cup qualifier.

The match between the two countries then had to be abandoned and rioting spread into the city, where shops and cars were burnt and some 30 people arrested.

Mali were later banned from using the stadium.