Weeks after CAF announced they were stripped of the AFCON 2025 title, Senegal paraded their trophy at the Stade de France before they played against Peru in a friendly game, Soccernet.ng reports.
Former Flying Eagles coach John Obuh, has slammed CAF for terrible decision-making, which has, in turn, ridiculed African Football on the global stage.
Senegal, because they walked out for a decision which they felt was unfair, saw their 1-0 win turned into a 0-3 loss, seven weeks after the final was played.
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John Obuh reacts to Senegal parading the AFCON trophy
While Pape Thiaw's team secured a fine 2-0 win in their preparatory match for the World Cup, it was their action to parade the trophy before the game that drew headlines.
Obuh, weighing in on the act, admitted the gesture was in no way disrespectful. Instead, he opined that the African Federation should take all the blame.
“I don’t see it as disrespectful at all. CAF has somehow shot itself in the foot because once you fail to take decisions when they are supposed to be taken, your [eventual] decision attracts sympathy,” the 66-year-old told Footy Africa.
“To Senegal, they still believe they have won the cup, and they can parade it anywhere they want until that appeal is heard.
“They had enough time to have dealt with this, most especially on the day the match was played. Personally, I think it's unwise to have stripped the cup from Senegal to Morocco.
“If you listen to recent statements from the FIFA President regarding that game, it sounds more in favour of Senegal than Morocco. We have to wait and see how it plays out in the appellate court,” the former Rangers coach continued.
Obuh also stressed that CAF's incompetence could lead to geopolitical tensions on the African continent.
“It is unfortunate. That is Africa for you,” the one-time AFCON-U20 winner continued.
“The Arabs [in North Africa] do not always believe they are Africans, and the rest of us in West Africa try to support ourselves.
“A house divided against itself doesn’t stand. That is exactly what CAF needs to deal with, avoiding these kinds of divisions in the future,” he concluded.
Senegal and Morocco, alongside eight other teams will be representing Africa at the World Cup.
