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Pitch Invasion Brings An End To Ivory Coast-Senegal Friendly

Pitch Invasion Brings An End To Ivory Coast-Senegal Friendly

A pitch invasion in the dying minutes of a friendly international between Ivory Coast and Senegal at the Charlety Stadium on the outskirts of Paris caused the game to be called off with the score at 1-1.

A goal from Sadio Mane from the penalty spot gave the Teranga Lions the lead, but the Elephants would equalise through Bi Gohi Cyriac three minutes later.

The match seemed to be heading for a draw when supporters in the stands became restless and lost respect for proceedings. The trouble in the stands at the stadium soon led to a pitch invasion, with a few supporters evading stewards to gain access to the pitch.

One fan in particular appeared to run up to and tackle Senegal’s Lamine Gassama to the ground, with reports later suggesting that the player was his hero.

A selection of fans also appeared to bypass barriers to climb into the venue without tickets for the game.

The pitch invasion saw French referee Tony Chapron instructing the players to the return to the changing rooms as a precaution, before making the decision to cancel the game altogether in the 88th minute.

An entertaining match was marred by a poor ending and disrespect from both sets of supporters in France, ensuring that the encounter would be remembered more for the pitch invasion than the skills and abilities on show on the night.

This is not the first time these two teams have been involved in fan trouble that led to the abandonment of a match, as an incident in the Senegalese capital Dakar in 2012 replicated this outcome.

Senegal were disqualified from the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations after missiles were thrown onto the pitch by supporters during their play-off match against Ivory Coast in 2012.

It is unclear whether world governing body FIFA will punish either of the national teams for the behaviour of their supporters.