Aliou Cissé vs Pape Bouba Diop
Senegal against Senegal. The almanac states its case, the crowd votes, you decide.
Aliou Cissé
Senegal · 2002–22 · CB
- Almanac rating
- 83
- Rank in Senegal
- #10 of 33
- Caps
- 33 · 0 goals
- Clubs
- Paris Saint-Germain, Birmingham City, Portsmouth
Bamako, 10 February 2002: he walked up for Senegal's fifth penalty in the Africa Cup of Nations final, Alioum Boukar saved it, and Cameroon took the trophy. Twenty years later he was the coach in Yaoundé when Senegal took that title for the first time, in 2021; as a player he captained the side to the 2002 World Cup quarter-finals, and he was named CAF Coach of the Year in 2022. Career record: 33 caps and 0 goals for Senegal; club career at Paris Saint-Germain, Birmingham City, Portsmouth.
Pape Bouba Diop
Senegal · 2002–08 · CDM
- Almanac rating
- 84
- Rank in Senegal
- #9 of 33
- Caps
- 63 · 11 goals
- Clubs
- Neuchâtel Xamax FCS, Fulham, Portsmouth
Thirty minutes into the 2002 World Cup opener in Seoul, he forced the loose ball past France after Diouf's low cross, then laid his number 19 shirt by the corner flag and danced around it. Three goals made him Senegal's top scorer at a World Cup that ended in the quarter-finals, and he was an Africa Cup of Nations runner-up months earlier; he later came off the bench in Portsmouth's 2008 FA Cup final win. Career record: 63 caps and 11 goals for Senegal; club career at Neuchâtel Xamax FCS, Fulham, Portsmouth.
The verdict
The almanac puts Pape Bouba Diop ahead by 1 rating point, 84 against 83.
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