Zokora fined $20,000

 

 

Ivory Coast defensive midfielder and vice captain Didier Zokora was slapped with a $20,000 fine on Monday by the Ivorian Football Federation for absconding from the team’s camp ahead of Saturday’s World Cup qualifier against Morocco in Abidjan.


“Mr Didier Zokora will no longer wear the captain armband of the national team no matter the circumstances,” the FA president Sidy Diallo said in a statement.
“The last grouping of the Ivorian national team was marked by an unacceptable reaction from Didier Zokora concerning the captaincy of the team.”

The 32-year-old former Tottenham player, who now plies his trade in Turkey at Trabzonspor, left the team’s hotel for an unknown destination but reappeared hours later.
Sources close to the technical staff said Zokora was exasperated when he was stripped of the team’s captaincy and given to Didier Drogba, who was returning to the outfit after months of absence.
The Elephants were held to a 1-1 draw by Morocco although the Ivorians had qualified to the knockout stage of the World Cup qualifying.