馃嚫馃嚦SenegalWest Africa
Zinedine Zidane deepfake circulates online with fabricated comments on Senegal's national football team coach Pape Thiaw
via SeneNews2 min read
A video widely shared on social media, attributing statements to former French international Zinedine Zidane, has sparked controversy online. The viral recording presents the former coach as commenting on the management of Senegal's national football team and technical choices made during the World Cup, specifically criticizing coach Pape Thiaw. The video claims Zidane stated, "For me, Senegal lost because of the coach's choices. How can you lead 2-0 and immediately remove the three midfielders who dominated the match? Pape Gueye, Iliman Ndiaye, and Habib Diarra gave balance to this team. These changes completely revived Belgium." He is also quoted saying, "Pape Thiaw does not have the level to coach this Senegal team." However, after verification, it has been confirmed that the video is manipulated content, a deepfake using artificial intelligence to imitate Zidane's image and voice. None of these statements were authentically made by him. The widely circulated video is out of context and manipulated. It is not a recent statement related to the World Cup or a match analysis, but an old excerpt from an institutional intervention where Zidane participated in an activity related to the United Nations Development Programme UNDP as a goodwill ambassador. The original video contains no comments about Senegal, a recent competition, or a national technical staff. The elements currently circulating on social media are an editorial montage that superimposed subtitles and audio narrati
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by SeneNews.
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Following Senegal's elimination from the World Cup by Belgium, midfielder Pape Gueye announced a temporary withdrawal from the national team, citing frustration with the technical staff. His statement, "I will come back to tell you a few words about the elimination... but I announce today that as long as this technical staff is in place, I will take a break from the national team," has sparked debate. Sports journalist Mansour Loum clarified that Gueye's criticism is not aimed at head coach Pape Thiaw, but rather at an influential staff member believed to be dictating poor choices to the coach. Loum stated on Match 360, "Pape Gueye is indeed targeting someone, but it's not Pape Thiaw. He is criticizing a staff member whom he believes has too much influence over the coach, to the point of having dictated bad choices to him."
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