President Macky Sall of Senegal has heralded late former international Papa Bouba Diop at a ceremony marking the reception of his coffin from Lens in Northern France, where he died after an illness.
Diop, who died last week at 42 will be mostly remembered by his compatriots for scoring the country’s first-ever World Cup goal when he grabbed the winner against then defending champions France at the Korea/Japan 2002 World Cup.
Senegal went on the have a memorable tournament as they reached the quarter-finals, before getting ousted by Turkey.
Diop was also a member of the team that reached the final of the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations, losing out to Cameroon on penalties.
His club career included stints with Lens in France before a move to England saw him turn out for Fulham, West Ham United, Birmingham City, and Portsmouth where they won the FA Cup in 2008.
During Friday’s ceremony, Sall said: “the loss for the nation is immense,” adding that “Diop placed Senegal for posterity, on the planet of football.”
President Sall also announced that a museum facility inside a 50,000-seater stadium under construction near the country’s capital Dakar will now be named in Diop’s honour.
His team-mates from the renowned 2002 Senegal team were in attendance at the ceremony on Friday with Diop due to be buried on Saturday.
May his soul rest in peace