Papa Bouba Diop facts for kids

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Papa Bouba Diop

Papa Bouba Diop in 2014
Personal information
Full name	Papa Bouba Diop
Date of birth	(1978-01-28)28 January 1978
Place of birth	Dakar, Senegal
Date of death	29 November 2020(2020-11-29) (aged 42)
Place of death	Paris, France
Height	1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder, centre back
Youth career
1994–1995	Ndeffann Saltigue
1995–1996	ASC Diaraf
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1996–1999	ASC Diaraf
1999–2000	Vevey
2000–2001	Neuchâtel Xamax	19	(4)
2001–2002	Grasshoppers	29	(5)
2002–2004	Lens	47	(6)
2004–2007	Fulham	76	(8)
2007–2010	Portsmouth	53	(0)
2010–2011	AEK Athens	19	(1)
2011–2012	West Ham United	16	(1)
2012–2013	Birmingham City	2	(1)
Total		261	(26)
International career
2001–2008	Senegal	63	(11)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Papa Bouba Diop (born January 28, 1978 – died November 29, 2020) was a professional football player from Senegal. He mostly played as a defensive midfielder, but could also play as a centre back. People thought he was a strong and tough player, similar to Patrick Vieira.

Fans in England called him "The Wardrobe" because he was so tall and strong. He played for Fulham and Portsmouth in the top English league, the Premier League. He even won the FA Cup with Portsmouth in 2008. Diop also played in Switzerland for Neuchâtel Xamax and Grasshopper, in France for Lens, and in Greece for AEK Athens.

One of his most famous moments was scoring the winning goal for Senegal against the world champions France in the first match of the 2002 FIFA World Cup. This was Senegal's first ever World Cup game! He also played in four Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, helping Senegal reach the final in 2002.

Papa Bouba Diop's Football Journey

Starting His Career in Football

Diop was born in Rufisque, a city in Dakar, Senegal. He started playing football with a junior team called Ndeffann Saltigue. In 1996, he joined ASC Diaraf in the Senegal Premier League.

Later, he moved to Switzerland. He played for a short time with Vevey, a third-tier club. Then, in 2000, he became a professional player for Neuchâtel Xamax in Switzerland's top league. In December of that year, he joined another top club, Grasshoppers. He helped them win the championship title in his first half-season. In January 2002, he moved to France to play for Lens in Ligue 1.

Playing for Fulham Football Club

After playing well for Lens, Papa Bouba Diop joined the Premier League team Fulham in July 2004. He signed a four-year contract. Diop played his first game for Fulham on August 14, 2004, against Manchester City.

He scored his first goal for Fulham against Chelsea. Even though Fulham lost that game 4–1, Diop's performance in his first season was so good that he won Fulham's "Opta player of the season" award for 2004–05.

Lawrie Sanchez, who was Fulham's manager, believed Diop could become one of the best midfielders in the Premier League. He said Diop had everything needed to be a top player.

Diop was nominated for the Fulham "Player of the Year" award for the 2005–06 season. He then signed a new contract to stay with Fulham until 2009. Diop said he felt he made the right choice to stay. He became a favorite player among the fans.

He missed some games in the 2006–07 season because of injuries. In January 2007, Wigan Athletic wanted to buy him, but Diop decided to stay with Fulham. He helped them avoid being moved down to a lower league.

After three years at Craven Cottage, Fulham's home stadium, Diop moved to Portsmouth. He had played 84 matches for Fulham and scored nine goals.

Time at Portsmouth Football Club

Diop signed a five-year contract with Portsmouth. He played his first game for them on September 15, 2007, against Liverpool. The game ended in a 0–0 draw.

Diop was a very important player when Portsmouth won the 2008 FA Cup. He played a strong defensive game and made key tackles, especially against Cardiff City in the final.

After Portsmouth was moved down to a lower league, Diop left the club. In July 2010, he moved to AEK Athens in Greece. He played 72 games for Portsmouth but did not score any goals.

Playing for AEK Athens

On July 13, 2010, Diop joined AEK Athens, signing a two-year contract. He made his debut for AEK Athens on August 19, 2010, in a Europa League game against Dundee United.

Diop scored his first goal in the Greek Super League against PAOK on June 3, 2011. He played in 19 league games that season. On April 30, 2011, Diop won the Greek Cup with AEK, beating Atromitos 3–0.

Joining West Ham United

On August 30, 2011, West Ham United announced that Diop had joined them on a one-year deal. He came to the club for free after leaving AEK Athens.

He played his first game for West Ham on October 1, 2011, against Crystal Palace. He scored his only goal for West Ham on December 17, 2011, against Barnsley. This goal was the winner in a 1–0 victory.

Diop played 16 league games for West Ham and was a well-liked member of the team. Even though he wasn't playing on the day, he celebrated with the team when they won promotion to the Premier League at Wembley Stadium in May 2012. His contract with West Ham ended on June 30, 2012.

Short Time at Birmingham City

In October 2012, Diop agreed to join Birmingham City on a short contract. He joined his former teammate Lee Clark, who was the manager.

He made his debut for Birmingham as a substitute on November 27, 2012, in a 1–1 draw against Blackpool. He scored his first goal for Birmingham, a powerful header, in a game against Crystal Palace on December 15. Birmingham came back from being 2–0 down to draw the game. He got another month's contract after this goal.

However, he soon injured his hamstring. Because of the club's financial problems, they couldn't offer him another contract. He left Birmingham City in January 2013.

Representing Senegal: International Career

Bouba Diop was first called to play for the Senegal national squad in 1999, when he was 21 years old.

He was part of the Senegal team that finished second in the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations in Mali. He scored the first goal in their 2–1 win over Nigeria in the semi-finals.

He is most famous for scoring the very first goal of the 2002 FIFA World Cup against France. This goal led to a 1–0 win against the defending world champions and helped them get knocked out early from the tournament. Senegal went on to reach the quarter-finals in that World Cup. Diop was his team's top scorer in the tournament with three goals. He also scored twice against Uruguay.

When he scored against France, Diop celebrated by running to the corner of the field, laying his shirt down, and having his teammates dance around it.

Diop played in three more Africa Cup of Nations tournaments. In 2004, he scored in a 3–0 win over Kenya. In 2006, he scored in a 3–2 victory against Guinea in the quarter-finals. His last games were in the 2008 tournament. Diop played 63 times for Senegal and scored 11 goals.

During the 2022 World Cup, the Senegal team dedicated their win over Ecuador to Diop. This was on the second anniversary of his death.

Diop's Playing Style

Chris Coleman, his manager at Fulham, said Diop had "great feet, scores goals, defends well, tackles, has got good pace." He also mentioned that Diop's "stature and ability" were special in the Premier League at the time, similar to Patrick Vieira.

Paul Scholes, a former Manchester United midfielder, said Diop was one of the most "awkward" players he had played against. Scholes noted that "you get involved physically with him and you're wasting your time." Because he was so tall (1.95 meters or 6 feet 5 inches), fans in England nicknamed him "The Wardrobe."

His Passing

Diop passed away in Paris on November 29, 2020, after a long illness. It was reported that he had ALS.

Diop's funeral was held in Dakar on December 4, before he was buried in his hometown. His wife, Marie Aude, their son and daughter, and the President of Senegal, Macky Sall, were there. Many of his teammates from the 2002 World Cup also attended.

Career Achievements

Here are some of the awards and championships Papa Bouba Diop won:

Grasshoppers

• Swiss Super League: 2000–01

Portsmouth

• FA Cup: 2007–08

AEK Athens

• Greek Cup: 2010–11

Senegal

• Africa Cup of Nations runner-up: 2002

Images for kids

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  Papa Bouba Diop in 2014

See also

In Spanish: Papa Bouba Diop para niños