By RYAN TOLMICH

Days after Michel Platini questioned the upcoming African Nations Cup, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has hit back at the UEFA President.

In a statement released Wednesday, the CAF accused Platini for overstepping his lines when the UEFA president questioned whether or not the tournament should continue in the wake of the Ebola crisis.

“In a televised broadcast on the evening of Sunday, 19 October 2014, the President of the Union of European Football Association (UEFA), Michel Platini, found it necessary to question maintaining the scheduled date of the Orange Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2015,” the statement said. “The issue has been debated and has been in the public domain the last few days following a request for postponement by the Kingdom of Morocco due to the Ebola outbreak.

“Under the principle of non-interference required to comply, CAF has refrained so far to comment on some issues on the managing of European football or any other continent… CAF hereby reaffirm the importance it attaches to respect of its sovereignty and does not intend to let anyone interfere in the management of its affairs.”

Here are some more news and notes to kickoff your Monday morning:

KOMPANY BLASTS UEFA FOR ALLOWING FANS DESPITE STADIUM BAN

Despite a ban that forced the club to play within an empty stadium, CSKA Moscow played front of about 350 fans in a 2-2 draw with Manchester City.

Man City have filed a complaint against UEFA and, while he admitted the fans in the stadium had no effect on his side, captain Vincent Kompany has hit out at UEFA for punishing his side’s fans by not allowing them in.

 No, it didn’t have an effect on the players,” Kompany said. “It doesn’t have an effect, it’s just little things when you leave with a result like this, obviously you can’t deny there’s a bit of frustration, and I’m not looking for an excuse.

“But if you want to play it fair then, fair enough, you’ve got to let your sponsors have some tickets but why the hell do we not have any fans here? Why? What have our fans done wrong? So it needs to be looked at, it needs to be changed, because our fans shouldn’t be punished.”

GARCIA TAKES BLAME FOR EMBARASSING ROMA DEFEAT

Fresh off one of the most embarrassing losses in the club’s history, Roma manager Rudi Garcia has attempted to shoulder his share of the blame.

The Italian side was throughly destroyed by Bayern Munich Tuesday, 7-1, and Garcia has admitted that his tactical choices left his team at a disadvantage.

“It was a tactical collapse more than a psychological one. We weren’t aggressive enough and allowed Bayern to play,” Garcia said. “I am the first one who made the mistake, it is not the fault of the players, the first-half approach was my fault entirely. It was the wrong strategy, we should’ve been more closed up and try to hit them on the counter-attack.

“Once we were a goal down after 10 minutes, we ran forward and that played into Bayern’s hands. We were too eager to get it back on track and left spaces that Bayern took advantage of. We should’ve kept our heads and waited for the right chance. We had a good reaction after the break, their goalkeeper prevented us scoring a couple more, but I am disappointed by the two goals we conceded late on. We wanted to prove there is pride in this squad and we did that in the second half.”

Despite the loss, Roma remains very much alive in the group following Manchester City’s draw away at CSKA Moscow.

“Now we must lift our heads and the only good news is Manchester City’s draw, which allows us to stay second in the group,” he added. “Bayern were stronger than us and we played much less well than usual. We were almost spectators in the first half and what I don’t like is the lack of aggression and unity.

“We must accept this defeat, which proves we also need more steps to get closer to the best teams in the world. We are still second and can hope for qualification, but certainly not playing like this. Playing against Bayern Munich there is only one thing to lose and that is with a slap to the face. Losing to them is normal.”

QUICK KICKS

Ahead of Wednesday’s meeting between the two sides, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard admitted that he almost left the English club for Real Madrid. (REPORT)

Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina is set to miss three months due to a thigh injury. (REPORT)

Bayer Leverkusen have been ordered to pay back $20 million in sponsorship money. (REPORT)

Italian legend Fabio Cannavarro is reportedly under investigation for alleged tax fraud. (REPORT)

Santos Laguna thrashed Chivas de Guadalajara, 5-0, Tuesday. (REPORT)

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What do you think of CAF’s comments? How should UEFA handle stadium bans like CSKA Moscow’s? Which of Tuesday’s Champions League results surprised you most?

Share your thoughts below.