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Kumasi, Ghana: Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba has promised to do everything possible to win the 2010 African Nations Cup after his team were defeated 4-1 by defending champions Egypt in Thursday's semifinal.
"Straight after the game I was already thinking about 2010 because, until I play my last game, I will do everything in my power to bring the Cup to Ivory Coast," Drogba told reporters.
"Maybe I won't win it, but I will give it my best shot.
"Even if I don't win, I think we are building something which is strong. I hope the federation and everybody in Ivory Coast will keep up the standard we've reached."
The 29-year-old Chelsea striker also missed out in 2006 when Ivory Coast lost on penalties to Egypt in the final. On that occasion, he squandered the game's best chance and missed his penalty during the shootout.
Drogba said he did not think his team relied too much on him.
"We have scored 14 goals and I have only scored three of them," he said. "I don't think the team is over-dependent on me, on the contrary, we have shown that the team is not just Drogba."
Angola starts afresh
Meanwhile, Angola have begun building four new stadiums for the next African Nations Cup finals costing about $440 million (Dh1.6 billion).
Angola Football Federation president Justino Fernandes told a news conference the stadiums would be ready by November 2009, just over a month before the event starts. The tournament is scheduled for January 10-31, 2010.
Fernandes said a new stadium was being built in the capital Luanda with a 50,000-seat capacity at a cost of $200 million.
A new stadium in Benguela will seat 35,000 and cost $95 million, while smaller stadiums in Cabinda and Lubango will seat 20,000 each and cost around $75 million.
All the stadiums are being built by Chinese construction companies.
New hotels are also being planned for the four cities.
The Confederation of African Football will hold a first inspection visit in April.
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