Papa Bouba Diop, a former midfielder who represented Senegal more than 60 times and played for several European football clubs, has died at the age of 42, reportedly following a long illness.

Diop scored the first goal of the 2002 World Cup held in Japan and South Korea when Senegal shocked reigning champions France by beating them 1-0 in the opening game.

Senegal football’s federation confirmed Diop’s death on Sunday.

Former French club Lens said it learned the news with “great sadness” and offered condolences to his family, while West London side Fulham, another former club, said they were “devastated” to hear of his death.

World football governing body FIFA, through its World Cup Twitter account, said it was “saddened to learn of the passing of Senegal legend Papa Bouba Diop”.

“Once a World Cup hero, always a World Cup hero.”

In the 2002 World Cup, Diop scored two more goals in Senegal’s 3-3 draw with Uruguay in the group stage to become their top scorer at the tournament as they went on to reach the quarter-finals.

In all, the versatile defensive midfielder made 63 appearances for his country scoring 11 goals.- Al Jazeera