El Hadji Diouf after winning the Scottish League Cup with Rangers |
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | El-Hadji Ousseynou Diouf | ||
| Date of birth | 15 January 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Dakar, Senegal | ||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position | Striker/Right winger | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Doncaster Rovers | ||
| Number | 19 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Rennes | |||
| –1998 | Sochaux | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1998–1999 | Sochaux | 15 | (0) |
| 1999–2000 | Rennes | 28 | (1) |
| 2000–2002 | Lens | 54 | (18) |
| 2002–2005 | Liverpool | 80 | (6) |
| 2004–2005 | → Bolton Wanderers (loan) | 27 | (9) |
| 2005–2008 | Bolton Wanderers | 88 | (12) |
| 2008–2009 | Sunderland | 14 | (0) |
| 2009–2011 | Blackburn Rovers | 60 | (4) |
| 2011 | → Rangers (loan) | 15 | (1) |
| 2011– | Doncaster Rovers | 6 | (2) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2000–2009 | Senegal | 69 | (21) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 28 November 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (born 15 January 1981 in Dakar, Senegal) is a Senegalese footballer who currently plays for Doncaster Rovers. He can play on both wings as well as in attack. He has also garnered a large amount of notoriety for a series of controversial incidents.[1]
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Diouf started his career in France with Sochaux-Montbéliard. He made his debut appearance in a 2–1 win against Bastia on 12 November 1998, before moving to Rennes for the 1999-00 season. He moved to Lens the following season, spending two years at the Pas-de-Calais club before moving to English club Liverpool in 2002 for a fee of £10millon.
Bolton Wanderers bought Diouf from Liverpool for an undisclosed fee at the start of the 2005/06 season, after they had loaned the player for the 2004/05 season. On 15 September 2005, Diouf scored Bolton's first ever goal in a European competition against Lokomotiv Plovdiv in a UEFA Cup match at the Reebok Stadium. Bolton went on to win the game 2–1. He was largely successful at Bolton and became a fans' favourite due to his flair and direct running. Diouf confirmed in an interview with the BBC that he would be leaving Bolton at the end of the 2007/08 season and that his goal against Sunderland on 3 May marked his last appearance at the Reebok Stadium.[2]
Diouf signed for Sunderland on 28 July 2008, after Bolton agreed to a transfer fee of £2.6 million.[3] He signed a four year contract at the Stadium of Light after undergoing a medical.[4] Diouf said that he was happy to join Sunderland.[5] Then-manager Roy Keane said he was happy that a player who "teams and supporters hate" had joined Sunderland: "El Hadji has always been the kind of player opposition teams and supporters hate, a thorn in the side. That's why we're delighted to now have him in our squad."[3]
Diouf signed for Blackburn Rovers for an undisclosed fee on 30 January 2009, signing a three-and-half-year deal after just six months at the Stadium of Light, rejoining former Bolton manager Sam Allardyce at the club.[6] He was given the number 18 shirt and scored his first goal for the club against Fulham at Craven Cottage on 11 March 2009 in a 2–1 win.[7] During the summer transfer window, Rovers manager Sam Allardyce revealed that Diouf was acquired for only £1 million.[8] Diouf scored his first home goal for Rovers at Ewood Park in the club's 3–1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers on 12 September 2009. On 2 January 2010, he was sent off in a 3–1 defeat to Aston Villa in the third round of the FA Cup.[9] On 21 March 2010, Diouf scored the equalising goal against Chelsea in a 1–1 draw at Ewood Park which opened up the 2010 title race, with Chelsea dropping vital points. He started the next two Premier League games against Birmingham and Burnley; he then made his fortieth appearance for the club at Fratton Park playing against bottom-of-the-league side Portsmouth in a 0–0 draw on 3 April. By the end of the 2009-10 season, he had made 27 appearances, scoring three goals. He was given number 10 for the 2010-11 season.
On 20 August 2011, Rovers manager Steve Kean confirmed that Diouf wasn't in his first-team plans, and that he expected him to leave before the end of the 2011/12 transfer window.[10]
On 31 August 2011 Blackburn terminated Diouf's contract by mutual consent. He had fallen out with manager Kean after returning late for pre-season training.[11]
On the last day of the 2011 January transfer window, Diouf joined Scottish Premier League champions Rangers on loan until the end of the 2010–11 season.[12] He made his debut on 2 February, coming on as a 20th minute substitute for injured team-mate Lee McCulloch during a 1-0 win over Hearts at Ibrox. He made his first start for Rangers four days later in a 2-2 draw with Celtic in the Scottish Cup. Diouf scored his first goal for Rangers on 24 February in a 2-2 draw against Sporting CP in the Europa League, netting the opening goal of the game with a header in the 20th minute.[13] He then scored his second goal for Rangers on 13 March in a Scottish Premier League match with Kilmarnock, again scoring the first goal as Rangers won 2-1.[14] In March 2011 Diouf was part of the Rangers team that won the Scottish League Cup after a 2-1 win over rivals Celtic.[15] Diouf also collected an SPL winners medal as Rangers performed a comeback from two points behind Celtic to win the league by one point.
In October 2011, he was handed a trial by West Ham United and their manager, Sam Allardyce, his manager at both Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers.[16] On 28 October it was announced that Diouf would not be joining the club due to a lack of fitness and his bad reputation. Allardyce later confirmed that the depth of feeling amongst fans was taken into account in his decision not to sign the player.[17]
On 31 October 2011, Diouf signed for Doncaster Rovers on a three month contract.[18] He scored his first two goals for Doncaster against Ipswich at Portman Road on 5 November 2011, earning Man of the Match honours and a shock 3-2 victory.[19] He took the captains armband in a goalless draw against Watford but a training injury meant he was unable to play the following games. On 23 December, Diouf signed a 18 month contract at Keepmoat Stadium, keeping him in Doncaster till the end of the 2012-13 season.[20]
Diouf's international career started in April 2000 against Benin. He has earned 69 international caps and scored 21 goals for his country. He played for Senegal in their 2002 FIFA World Cup campaign and was elected to the World Cup All-Star team, after leading Senegal to the quarter-finals and victories over France (1–0) and Sweden (2–1). Senegal eventually lost 1–0 in extra time to Turkey. He was also part of the Senegal team who were the runners-up in the 2002 African Cup of Nations. Diouf was banned from international football for four matches in 2004 for a verbal assault on referee Ali Bujsaim.[21]
In 2004, he was named in the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living footballers selected by Pelé in conjunction with FIFA's centenary celebrations. In October 2007, Diouf retired from international football, stating he had been frustrated by organisational problems with the side.[22] However, Senegal coach Henryk Kasperczak announced later in the month that he would name Diouf in the next squad.[23]
On 3 April 2009 he re-confirmed his retirement after 41 further games.[24]
Diouf has twice been named the African Footballer of the Year.
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| France | League | Coupe de France | Coupe de la Ligue | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1998–99 | Sochaux-Montbéliard | Ligue 1 | 16 | 0 | - | - | - | 15 | 0 | |||
| 1999-00 | Stade Rennais | 28 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 29 | 1 | |||
| 2000–01 | Lens | 28 | 8 | - | - | - | 28 | 8 | ||||
| 2001–02 | 26 | 10 | - | - | - | 26 | 10 | |||||
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2002–03 | Liverpool | Premier League | 29 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 46 | 6 |
| 2003–04 | 26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 33 | 0 | ||
| 2004–05 | Bolton Wanderers | 27 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 32 | 9 | ||
| 2005–06 | 20 | 3 | - | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 27 | 4 | |||
| 2006–07 | 33 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 35 | 5 | |||
| 2007–08 | 34 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 42 | 6 | ||
| 2008–09 | Sunderland | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | Blackburn Rovers | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 | |
| 2009–10 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 3 | ||
| 2010–11 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | Doncaster Rovers | The Championship | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| Scotland | League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2011 | Rangers (loan) | Scottish Premier League | 15 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 22 | 2 |
| Total | France | 98 | 19 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 99 | 19 | |||
| England | 247 | 30 | 12 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 25 | 3 | 294 | 46 | ||
| Total | Club | 360 | 50 | 15 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 29 | 4 | 418 | 67 | |
Diouf's professional career has at times been overshadowed by controversy. During his time at Sochaux, he was involved in a succession of minor transgressions. This resulted in the move to Rennes, where he was convicted for driving without a licence, and was involved in a car crash. Taking into account his age and evident remorse, the French courts sentenced Diouf to community service.[26]
During his early Premier League career, Diouf was involved in several incidents where he spat, or allegedly spat, at fans and opposition players. In 2002 he was accused of spitting at West Ham fans whilst warming-up as a substitute for Liverpool during a game at Anfield. After investigation by Merseyside Police there was no evidence that an offence had been committed, but that Diouf had spat on the ground.[27] On 13 March 2003, whilst playing for Liverpool, he was involved in an incident when he spat at Celtic fans during a televised UEFA Cup quarter-final. His club fined him two weeks' wages,[28] UEFA gave him a two-match ban,[29] and Diouf was charged with assault.[30] Although Diouf initially pled not guilty,[31] he later changed his plea to guilty, and was fined £5,000.[32] Whilst he was on loan at Bolton, Diouf was charged by the police for spitting at an 11-year-old Middlesbrough fan during a 1–1 draw in November 2004.[33] Then, on 27 November 2004, Diouf spat in the face of Portsmouth player Arjan de Zeeuw.[34] He was fined two weeks' wages by Bolton and was banned for three games by the FA after pleading guilty to a charge of improper conduct.[35] Bolton manager Sam Allardyce later revealed that he considered sending Diouf to see a sports psychologist.[36]
On 20 September 2009, Diouf was questioned by police after allegations that he had made a racist slur to a ball-boy during a match at Everton, telling him to "fuck off, white boy".[37] Diouf defended his actions by saying that the ball-boy had thrown the ball to him "like a bone to a dog" and that Everton fans were racially abusing and throwing bananas at him; police found no evidence of this.[38]
In April 2010, Diouf was arrested and charged with motoring offences in Manchester.[39]
On 8 January 2011, following Blackburn's 1–0 win over Queens Park Rangers in the FA Cup third round, QPR manager Neil Warnock accused Diouf of taunting Jamie Mackie whilst the latter lay on the pitch injured with a broken leg and referred to Diouf as "lower than a sewer rat".[40]
On 14 July 2011, it was reported that Diouf had not joined Blackburn Rovers for a pre-season tour of Austria and that his whereabouts were unknown.[41] It was later revealed that disciplinary measures would probably be taken against him.[42]
On 2 March 2011, Diouf was one of three Rangers players sent off in the Old Firm Derby, after an altercation at the touchline with Neil Lennon and dissent to the referee at full time.[43][44] Diouf was fined £5000 in April 2011 and warned over his future conduct by the Scottish Football Association.[45]
Diouf is the founder and chairman of The Dioufy Foundation whose stated goal is to help disadvantaged children in Senegal and the United Kingdom - Diouf's country of birth and adopted home country, respectively. The captain of the Senegalese national football team conceived The Dioufy Foundation "to repay some of the help and good fortune he himself received as a youngster in Senegal". Diouf wants to use his high-profile football career as a platform for his charity, which was launched officially on January 3, 2008 during a launch event, followed by a press conference.[46]
Diouf is married and has a daughter named Kenza. His older brother Dame Diouf is a retired professional footballer.
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