By Charles Maduka
Senegal midfielder Pape Gueye has announced that he will take a break from international football for as long as head coach Pape Thiaw remains in charge following the Teranga Lions’ dramatic exit from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The 27-year-old made the announcement on social media shortly after Senegal threw away a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 to Belgium after extra time in their Round of 16 match.
In a post written in French, Gueye said he would speak about Senegal’s elimination at a later time but insisted he would not represent the national team under the current coaching staff.
“I’ll come back to speak about our elimination, but today I announce that as long as this technical staff remains, I will take a break from the national team,” he wrote.
Senegal looked set to book a place in the quarter-finals after first-half goals from Habib Diarra and Ismaila Sarr gave the African champions a comfortable 2-0 lead. However, Belgium fought back through Romelu Lukaku and Youri Tielemans to force extra time before Tielemans scored a 125th-minute penalty, awarded after a VAR review, to seal a dramatic 3-2 victory.
The defeat ended Senegal’s hopes of recording their first World Cup knockout-stage victory since reaching the quarter-finals on their tournament debut in 2002.
Gueye’s announcement has increased pressure on Thiaw, whose substitutions while protecting a two-goal advantage have been heavily criticised by supporters and football analysts.
Responding to the criticism after the match, Thiaw defended his decisions, saying the substitutions were made because of player fatigue rather than tactical reasons.
“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,” the coach said.
“Of course, when you lose a match after leading 2-0, people will talk about the substitutions. But you can’t reduce everything to that. These changes were dictated primarily by fatigue rather than tactical considerations.”
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