Ivorian forward, Salomon Kalou has said that his country without Didier Drogba is like Barcelona without Lionel Messi.
Cote D'Ivoire are about to start their 2015 African Cup of Nations bid and the former Chelsea man described what the atmosphere is like within the camp at the moment.
"Everyone's getting prepared for it. People talk about nothing else," he told FIFA.com. "(They) get together and check the TV works. People decorate their homes and everyone wears orange capes and orange shirts.
"They always do everything they can from home to push our country towards victory. It's a huge party, and you see everyone in the streets dressed in orange, white and green. People organise evenings to watch games together, and there are parties and music."
The Lille star then spoke about the loss of Didier Drogba, who has retired from international football, which will likely leave a void up front for the West African team. He concluded the interview by saying that Drogba and Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o have set an example for many young players.
"It's difficult to imagine (life after Drogba). But it's a little like if you tried a few years ago to imagine Barça without Ronaldinho and Real without Zinedine Zidane, and yet today we have Messi and Ronaldo. Both teams always have new players who come in and take over.
"Today, Eto'o and Drogba represent not just Côte d'Ivoire and Cameroon but the success of an entire continent, and they've set an example for youngsters across the whole of Africa," he added. "And not just in football. The fact that they experienced success with their countries and also the big clubs they've played for has opened doors for all of us."
Cote D'Ivoire take on Guinea in their first AFCON match tomorrow evening.
You can follow that match LIVE in our Match Centre
You can also watch all the live action on Supersport 4 and Supersport Maximo at 18:00.
Do you think Cote d'Ivoire can move on with life after Drogba? Have your say in the comments section below.
