Senegal were knocked out of the World Cup in the round of 32 after a dramatic 3-2 extra-time defeat to Belgium, with Pape Gueye announcing he will boycott the national team as long as the current coaching staff remain in place
Senegal star Pape Gueye has downed tools from international duty, sparking a furious bust-up with head coach Pape Thiaw. The Villarreal midfielder insists he will be stepping away from the squad while the current technical team remains in position following their devastating 3-2 World Cup elimination to Belgium.
Gueye, 27, took to social media to deliver the shocking announcement after the African nation was left reeling from their World Cup heartbreak. Senegal shipped two goals in two-and-a-half minutes during their round of 32 knockout against Belgium as they threw away their place in the last-16, crashing out 3-2 in extra-time.
Habiib Diarra and Ismaila Sarr had put Senegal into a commanding position as they appeared destined to secure their spot in Tuesday's Round of 16 clash with USA. But strikes from Romelu Lukaku and Youri Tielemans rescued Rudi Garcia's men, with the Aston Villa ace converting a 125th-minute penalty after winning the spot-kick himself.
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In a message posted to his Instagram story, the 27 year old declared: "l'Il be back to give you a few words regarding elimination... but l announce today that as long as it's this technical staff l'II take a break from the selection."
Gueye was hauled off shortly after the hour mark, while Senegal held a two-goal advantage, with Thiaw introducing Monaco midfielder Lamine Camara. In the final 10 minutes, the match burst into life with Romelu Lukaku guiding home from a narrow angle to cut the deficit, reports the Mirror .
Before Senegal could fully readjust to seeing their lead reduced, they found themselves level when Leandro Trossard's delivery was headed home by Tielemans.
Belgium were against the wall and had been thoroughly outplayed by Senegal before the opportunity arose for a fightback. A spot-kick deep into the second-half of extra-time, given following the intervention of the video assistant referee, enabled Tielemans to complete the comeback for Garcia's men.
After the defeat, Thiaw said: "We just lost a match that was really important to us. We wanted to qualify for the Senegalese people, we thought we deserved it, but unfortunately, we are eliminated.
"I am sad, the players are sad too, because they really wanted this qualification."
Gueye, who netted twice in the 5-0 victory over Iraq, was withdrawn by Camara shortly after the hour mark. The 45 year old revealed that some of the changes were forced after players requested the manager to bring them off.
Everton's Iliman Ndiaye and Sunderland's Habib Diarra were substituted during the second-half before the comeback while Sadio Mane and Idrissa Gana Gueye were both withdrawn in extra-time.
Thiaw said: "They were tired and couldn't continue. Leaving them on the field would have been unprofessional on our part. We had to replace them, like for like.
"Of course, when you lose a match after leading 2-0, people inevitably talk about the substitutes. But you can't reduce everything to that. These changes were primarily dictated by fatigue, more than by tactical considerations."
Belgium will face USA in the next round after Mauricio Pochettino's team defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0. Florian Balogun experienced a rollercoaster evening, finding the net before receiving his marching orders, but Malik Tillman sealed their advancement eight minutes from the final whistle.
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