Chelsea striker Salomon Kalou has told Sky Sports that he wants Ivory Coast show their strength against England at the South African World Cup.
The two sides have been drawn in different groups for the finals in South Africa next summer, but they could meet – should they progress to the semi-final stage.
Kalou was not happy Ivory Coast were not drawn alongside England in Group C. Kalou’s national team landed in Group G alongside Brazil, Portugal and North Korea what has been called the “Group of Death”.
When asked if he was disappointed not to be playing against England in the Group Stage, Kalou told Sky Sports, “Yes, because when you go to these type of competitions you want to play against the best and prove yourself.
“So playing against England was an opportunity for us to see if we are a good team.
“The draw was not on our side with England but, you never know, maybe we will meet them in later rounds.”
Ivory Coast’s first match is against Portugal on June 15, 2010 followed by a meeting with Brazil before concluding the group-stage against minnows North Korea.
He said, “We can go as far as we want. We should not be afraid of other teams and just play our game. At the end, it is 11 against 11.”