Bad-boy Diouf blasts ‘worst ref ever’ for treatment
Diouf was one of three Rangers players dismissed in the 1-0 defeat, and revealed he told the referee ‘he was the worst referee I have ever had in my life’.
The fiery Senegal international is still coming to terms with life in Glasgow since joining Rangers on loan from Blackburn, and went on to claim he is deliberately provocative on the pitch, before describing himself as the ‘(rapper) Tupac of football’.
But it is his comments about Celtic manager Neil Lennon and Murray that could yet land him in hot water. “At first I went to see the ref as I was being kicked all over the park and the ref said to me, ‘You don’t have the right to speak to me,’ which annoyed me,” Diouf told French TV station Canal Plus. “You have to say the ref messed up the game, with cards flying everywhere. At the end, I told him he was the worst referee I’ve ever had, so he gave me another card.
“I said, ‘You can give me as many cards as you like, the match is over now’. I know it’s not good to get cards but I’m only suspended for the Cup, not the league.
“At the end I wanted to give my shirt to our fans because even though I hate losing, I felt we lost in a dignified way. We lost 1-0 with nine payers in the end and refs who were against us. The Celtic manager had insulted me, I answered back and I got a yellow card whereas he got nothing at all.”
Diouf was typically outspoken in his interview, claiming that he likes to wind up opposition players and fans.
“Maybe I have brought in a new style of football, in the way that Tupac Shakur gave us gangsta rap. Some like it, others don’t. You’d be surprised how many people come up to me in the street and say they like the way I am. But when you have tattoos and you’re a bit bling-bling, people are quick to form opinions about you. If you talk to my team-mates and different managers I’ve had, you’ll hear a different story. I’ve never missed a training session in my life, I’ve always given my all out on the field.”
And yet when he was a young boy growing up, Diouf was even more of a trouble-maker than he is now. “I was mad. No-one wanted their kids to play with me. People don’t realise how much calmer I am nowadays!
Diouf went on to give the broadest hint yet that he wants to stay at Rangers beyond his loan period.
“When you play Celtic, the atmosphere is like a World Cup final. I’ve played for Liverpool against Everton and Manchester United, I’ve played some big matches in my life but it’s the only derby I’ve ever played in where after the match, you’re not allowed to swap shirts. That shows how tense it is. Someone asked me if I realised the extent of the Catholic/Protestant thing. I said, ‘You have no worries with me, I’m a Muslim.’ And the guy snapped back, ‘From now on, you’re a Protestant Muslim.”
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
