Idrissa Gueye condemns ‘ridiculous’ decision to strip Senegal of Afcon title
Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye has branded the decision to strip Senegal of their Africa Cup of Nations victory as ridiculous, insisting his side remains the true champions.
The Confederation of African Football (Caf) controversially awarded the tournament title to Morocco last week.
Officials cancelled the original 1-0 victory for the Lions of Teranga and imposed a 3-0 default defeat instead.
The drastic ruling occurred after the Senegalese team briefly left the pitch to protest a disputed stoppage-time penalty, a move Caf interpreted as a match forfeiture.
‘We won the game on the pitch’
The Premier League veteran vehemently dismissed the boardroom reversal.
“I think this decision is just ridiculous,” stated the former Paris St-Germain player.
“We won the game on the pitch not in offices and as a Senegalese player I’m just proud of what we did.”
The combative holding midfielder emphasised that paper records cannot erase their physical triumph.
“We deserve this trophy,” he added.
“We fight on the pitch and everyone knows what happened and I think if you play 10 times this game we would win it 10 times.”
Fears for African football’s reputation
The experienced international suggested that such administrative interventions actively damage the global standing of the sport across the continent.
“Africa doesn’t need this type of decision because everyone has started to talk about Afcon and compare it against Europe and the Copa America,” he argued.
Despite the intense frustration directed at tournament organisers, the Goodison Park regular was quick to clarify that no bitterness exists toward their North African opponents.
He pointed to his close friendship with Moroccan international and Merseyside teammate Adam Aznou as proof of their continued camaraderie.
“We just laugh about this because sometimes it’s funny,” he explained.
“We are all brothers and no-one can push me to hate Morocco’s people.”
