Chelsea star Drogba “not ready to play” after Togo attack

Togo's Grenoble star Alaixys Romao believes Chelsea striker Didier Drogba is struggling to handle the impact of the gun attack on Togo's team bus last week.

In the aftermath of last week's attack, which left three members of the Togo staff dead and resulted in the side's withdrawal from the competition on the demands of the country's government, Drogba spoke with Manchester City and Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor and expressed his concerns about the emotional and mental consequences such an act could have on players.

Ivory Coast get their African Cup of Nations campaign underway later today against Burkina Faso and it is unlikely that Drogba will be allowed to withdraw from the starting line up, but Romao does not believe the 31 year-old is ready.

"There was a long discussion between Drogba and Adebayor," he told the Independent. "Drogba said he was fully aware of the psychological state that the Togo squad was in, and he too was not ready to play in this African Nations Cup."

Romao also said he believed the situation in Angola would be very different if a more high profile team had come under attack.

"If it had been Ivory Coast or Cameroon; or if [Samuel] Eto'o or Drogba had taken a bullet, the competition would have been stopped immediately."