Togo poised to return
The Togo squad were expected to return home on Sunday night after the country's leading governmental figures overruled the players and ordered them to pull out of the African Nations Cup.
The decision came after two days of toing and froing as to whether the team would participate in the tournament following Friday's attack on the team bus which claimed the lives of three people.
The players initially suggested they would withdraw, only to perform a U-turn after deciding they wanted to play on as a mark of respect to those killed, but Togolese prime minister Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo and president Faure Gnassingbe had the final say - despite some last-ditch talks instigated by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) designed to keep the team in Angola - insisting the squad return home immediately with the presidential plane dispatched to collect them.
Houngbo told L'Equipe: "We understand the approach of the players who wanted to express a way to avenge their fallen comrades, but it would be irresponsible on the part of the authorities to let them continue.
"The team must return today. The government's decision is unchanged.
"It is a conscious decision since Friday. If a team or a person present themselves under the banner of Togo, it would be a false representation."
Togo captain Emmanuel Adebayor Adebayor reluctantly accepted the decision after speaking with Gnassingbe on Sunday morning, stating to French radio station RMC: "The head of state has decided we will return.
"There was a meeting between players yesterday and we said we were still footballers. We all decided to do something good for the country and play to honour those who died. Unfortunately, the head of state and the country's authorities have decided otherwise. We will pack up and go home.
"Is there going to be another attack? Nobody knows. If they asked us back (home), maybe they received a call saying that the threat was not passed. We are obliged to respect that. The head of state knows what is good for our careers and our lives."
