The best Senegalese footballer in history and one of the best African footballers of all time or a spoiled bully accustomed to going on a rampage and stunts for no reason? There double soul of El Hadji Diouf has often fascinated insiders and not only: a real shooting star, bright and fiery during the sensational 2002 World Cup in Senegal but ephemeral in the continuation of the career in which he comes remembered for fights and bad choices more as demonstrated on the pitch.
THE DREAM WORLD CUP OF 2002 AND THE VICTORY OVER FRANCE – In Korea and Japan20 years ago, the striker born in 1981 from Dalar, with only 21 springs, was capable of to drag, together with comrades like Fadiga and Henry Camara, the national team Lions of Teranga up to the quarter-finals, best result ever in a World Cup and until a few months ago, before the victory of the African Cup by Koulibaly, Mané and companions, highest point reached by Senegal football, with theakmé from the victory at the debut against the former conquerors of France. It seemed the beginning of a career as predestined, it was the beginning of the decline: the young El Hadji was indeed bought from Houlier’s Liverpoolbefore ending up in oblivion, also due to various wrong attitudes in private life.
THE LENS EXPLOSION AND THE ICONIC BLONDE CREST – He was a talent that could have made history in the English Premier League afterwards the explosion in France in the Lens, hotbed of talent, following some positive seasons in Sochaux and Rennes. He had understood right away, when he moved from Dakar to France, that he had the ball in his destiny: the whole nation was hoping for its realization, in search of a football idol. The victory with the Giallorossi of the French championship and the triumph in the Uefa Cup semifinal against Arsenal in the historic Highbury Stadium they brought Diouf thanks to the late coach Bruno Metsu: technical, with great personality and iconic with its blonde crest, it was the bugbear of much better equipped national teams, such as France, but also Uruguay and Denmark. Assist for Diop against les Bleus and best man in the field award, a world champion event as an absolute protagonist, so much so that was included in the 2002 World All Star.
THE FIGHT WITH GERRADI, THE PROBLEMS WITH BENITEZ AND THE PANACEA BOLTON – The following year he won the prize of “African Footballer of the Year”before accept the offer from Liverpool, which paid him 10 million pounds after the departures of the various Anelka, Fowler and the Golden Ball Michael Owen. But the Senegalese he never managed to show what he was capable of, first with Houllier, and then with Rafael Benitezwho never considered it in the least and sent it off to its destination Bolton, where in 4 years he scored 21 goals, becoming the best European scorer in the history of Troffers, who, however, had to sell it to Sunderland for only 3 million euros, due to the economic crisis. Also to be remembered his fight with Steven Gerrard, ex partner in Reds that he had never digested it.
THE FIGHTING, THE ARREST AND THE SAD EPILOGUE: DIOUF TODAY – Then Blackburn, Glasgow Rangersdoive wins the Scottish League Cup and the Scottish Premier League e Doncaster Rovers, in the English Championship. More than for performance on the pitch, Diouf stood out for his harassing extracalcistic attitudes: thicknessor drunk in the bars of the city, he was also arrested along with the young Anton Ferdinand, brother of the former United Rio. Same speech in Leedswhere he got noticed mainly because of a beating suffered by a bartender which, when drunk, he had offended heavily. The sad ending is in Malaysia, in the last germata to try to relaunch. The withdrawal was the only possibility. For some years she has been a member of the African Fashion Gate e he tried a political career in your country. But the light-hearted blond boy who made the world dream with his Senegal in 2002 has never been seen again.
@ AleDigio89