Former Senegal and Premier League ace Papa Bouba Diop dies aged just 42 after illness | OneFootball

Goal have sadly reported this evening that former Senegal star Papa Bouba Diop has passed away at the of 42 years old, following a ‘long illness’.

Diop made 129 appearances in the Premier League for Fulham and Portsmouth, before later representing West Ham and Birmingham in the Championship.

Diop also featured for Grasshoppers and Ligue 1 outfit Lens earlier in his career, with the ace also experiencing a spell with Greek giants AEK Athens.

The defensive-minded ace, who had a massive 6ft5 frame winning a nickname of ‘wardrobe’, scored an iconic goal for Senegal in their first ever World Cup in 2002.

Diop bagged the decisive goal to stun reigning champions France on the way to a historic 1-0 win.

The ex-Premier League ace actually helped his side reach the quarter-final stages of that tournament.

At club level, Diop won the Swiss Super League with Grasshoppers, the FA Cup as part of Harry Redknapp’s Portsmouth side in 2007/08, the Greek Cup with Athens and also the Championship play-offs with the Hammers.

We’d like to send our thoughts and prayers to the Diop family at this difficult time.