Ivory Coast call up Diomande for World Cup playoff
(Reuters) - Ivory Coast named uncapped Ismael Diomande as midfield cover for this month's World Cup playoff against Senegal as Serey Die and Cheick Tiote are suspended for the match on November 16. The 21-year-old has just broken into the St Etienne first team and is in line for a first cap in the second leg in Casablanca, which will decide a place at next year's finals in Brazil. Coach Sabri Lamouchi has tinkered only lightly with a 25-man squad, announced by the Ivorian football federation on Thursday. The Ivorians, who lead 3-1 from the first leg at home last month where Die and Tiote added to their collection of yellow cards, also recalled Abdul Razak, recently sold by Manchester City to Anzhi Makhachkala, CSKA Moscow striker Seydou Doumbia and Norwegian born Mathis Bolly. Squad: Goalkeepers: Boubacar Barry (Lokeren), Abdoul Karim Cisse (Africa Sports), Sylvain Gbohouo (Sewe Sport) Defenders: Jean Akpa Akpro, Serge Aurier (both Toulouse), Arthur Boka (VfB Stuttgart), Benjamin Brou Angoua (Valenciennes), Soulemanye Bamba (Trabzonspor), Viera Diarrassouba (Caykur Rizespor), Kolo Toure (Liverpool), Didier Zokora (Trabzonspor) Midfielders: Ismael Diomande (St Etienne), Jean-Jacques Gosso Gosso (Genclerbirligi), Max Gradel (St Etienne), Abdul Razak (Anzhi Makhachkala) Romaric (Bastia), Yaya Toure (Manchester City) Forwards: Mathis Bolly (Fortuna Dusseldorf), Wilfried Bony (Swansea City), Seydou Doumbia (CSKA Moscow), Didier Drogba (Galatasaray), Gervinho (AS Roma), Salomon Kalou (Lille), Giovanni Sio (VfL Wolfsburg), Lacina Traore (Anzhi Makhachkala).
