Serey Die has revealed that he was moved to tears during the Ivory Coast's national anthem at the World Cup because he was thinking about his father.

The midfielder was overcome ahead of yesterday's Group C clash with Colombia, initially leading to reports that his father had died earlier in the day.

However, the Basel player said after the match: "I was going to play for my country. But it's true that I thought about my father, who died in 2004."

Ivory Coast lost the match 2-1.