Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat—Pape Gueye, the Villarreal midfielder and scorer of Senegal’s winning goal in the AFCON 2025 final against Morocco, has addressed last week’s chaotic AFCON final and some of the incidents that had Africa and the global footballing community catch their breath.
One of them was the “towel” episode involving goalkeeper Edouard Mendy. Moroccan players tried to remove the towel the Senegalese keeper had placed near his goal, which led to a brief confrontation.
Gueye explained in an interview with Spanish radio COPE: “Yes, I saw the clips after the match. I don’t know why they did that (the Moroccan players). During the game, many things happened, including the towel incident and the refereeing.”
He also responded to claims circulating online that Senegal used black magic during the tournament. Gueye dismissed the rumors outright: “No, none of that is true. After the match, the most important thing for us was the win we achieved, giving Senegal its second star.”
Asked why Senegalese players did not celebrate when Brahim Diaz missed Morocco’s late penalty, Gueye said the team wanted to stay focused: “We had to keep our concentration.” For him, discipline was more important than reacting emotionally in such a tense moment.
On his decisive goal, Gueye admitted it was the best moment in his career so far. “Right now, it’s the best goal of my career, because of the importance of the match,” he said. “After I scored, many things came to my mind. It felt like a childhood dream. I cried with joy.”
