252: Papa Bouba Diop, Portsmouth, Topps Match Attax Trading Card Game, 2009/10

Just under a fortnight ago Senegal won their second ever African Cup of Nations tournament thanks to an extra time goal from Pape Gueye sealing a 1-0 victory over hosts Morocco. On paper this sounds like the classic cagey international final but in reality there was more drama than an entire series of The Traitors and that was just in second half stoppage time. First of all Senegal had a perfectly good goal disallowed with the added farce of VAR not being consulted. Luckily fans of prolonged delays and questionable decisions only had to wait a few minutes for Morocco to be awarded a penalty when Brahim Diaz was held in the box. The understandably enraged Senegal manager Pape Thiaw instructed his team to leave the pitch in protest and, while captain Sadio Mane spent fifteen minutes talking his teammates back into finishing the game, there was an attempted pitch invasion and a fight in the press box. When the Senegalese players returned Brahim Diaz decided that this had all been a bit dull and decided to attempt a Panenka penalty which floated serenely into the arms of Senegal keeper Edouard Mendy who had also picked up a booking for refusing to actually take his place in goal for a further six minutes. What a time to be alive.

Les Lions have been one of the strongest sides in African football this century having reached four AFCON finals and produced a plethora of excellent footballers. They reached the knockout stages of the last World Cup in Qatar thanks to group stage victories over the hosts and Ecuador before being swept aside by England on their most recent run to quarter-final heartbreak. In 2018 Senegal were victims of the bizarre technicalities of FIFA tie-breaks when they finished the group with identical results and goal difference to Japan but were eliminated thanks to receiving two more bookings across the three games. Back in 2002 they made it all the way to the quarter-finals where they fell to a ‘golden goal’ from Turkey’s Ilhan Mansiz but not before their talented squad had made waves on the world stage. Immediately after the tournament El Hadji Diouf and Salif Diao arrived at Liverpool while captain Aliou Cisse joined Birmingham City. A year later they were joined in the Premier League by striker Henri Camara at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Amdy Faye at Portsmouth before Papa Bouba Diop arrived at Fulham in the summer of 2004.

When Senegal took on reigning World and European champions France in the opening game of the 2002 World Cup there was little expectation of an upset but, after half an hour, Diop beat Emmanuel Petit to El Hadji Diouf’s cross and converted on the second attempt. His sprint to the corner flag to lay his shirt down to lead a mass dance was up there with Roger Milla and Bebeto’s legendary World Cup celebrations and started the wheels falling off Les Bleus’ defence of their title. While a draw with Denmark and victory over Uruguay saw Senegal through to the knockouts, France were held to a goalless draw by the South Americans before Denmark waltzed to a 2-0 victory to send the champions home. Diop netted twice in the 3-3 draw with Uruguay and earned his place on the title page for my Year 9 French exercise book which subsequently earned me a detention from my embittered French teacher. In his defence I had maybe gone a bit far with the additions of both Danish goalscorers and tactics board drawings of all three goals his compatriots had conceded.

Diop arrived at Craven Cottage for an undisclosed fee from Lens and joined a suitably eclectic squad including Edwin van der Sar, Steed Malbranque and Andy Cole under the guidance of former Cottager Chris Coleman. His performances caught the eye, with Coleman comparing Diop to his idol Patrick Vieira, and he won the club’s Player of the Year award in his first two campaigns in West London. After injuries interrupted his third season, and Danny Murphy replaced him as captain, he moved to the ultimate Barclay’s club, Portsmouth, at the start of the 2007/08 season and slotted into a talented midfield alongside Sulley Muntari, Niko Krancjar and Pedro Mendes. Diop’s tackling and work rate helped Pompey to an impressive eighth placed finish in the Premier League and FA Cup glory against Cardiff City with none other than Paul Scholes describing him as one of the trickiest opponents he had ever faced. A managerial merry-go-round and financial issues saw Pompey relegated two seasons later and, following a morale boosting FA Cup final appearance in 2010, Diop was sold to AEK Athens to keep the meter running. Just a year later he returned to England with West Ham United before ending his career at Birmingham City during the 2012/13 season.

Papa Bouba Diop’s retirement appears to have been a relatively quiet affair and it came as a shock to the footballing world when he passed away in November 2020 following a long illness. Despite his intimidating stature, earning him the nickname ‘The Wardrobe’, he was remembered by his Pompey manager Harry Redknapp as “a great character” with “nothing nasty about him” whilst current Senegal captain Sadio Mane paid tribute to his important role in his nation’s history. His funeral in Dakar was attended by many of his 2002 World Cup team mates as well as then Senegalese President Macky Sall who described his passing as “a great loss for Senegal”. The second anniversary of his death coincided with Senegal’s World Cup victory over Ecuador and his compatriots made sure to dedicate their win to his memory. While the farcical scenes of the closing stages of this year’s African Cup of Nations’ final may overshadow their victory it’s clear that Senegal will be hard to beat when (or if) the World Cup comes to North America. That determination and desire would be a fitting tribute to Papa Bouba Diop.