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Taking Senegalese Soccer to New Heights, With Pride and Style

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Taking Senegalese Soccer to New Heights, With Pride and Style

DIAMNIADIO, Senegal — Standing on the sidelines of Senegal’s brand-new nationwide stadium, Aliou Cissé, the largest fan of his personal staff, waved his arms at 50,000 followers, exhorting them to cheer even louder, his signature dreadlocks bouncing on his shoulders.

Followers roared again, clapping and blowing their vuvuzelas at a extra deafening pitch. Minutes later, Senegal defeated its fiercest rival, Egypt, incomes a qualification for soccer’s World Cup, which begins this November in Qatar.

“Once we are collectively, Senegal wins,” a grinning Mr. Cissé, 46, mentioned at a postgame information convention. Or, as he likes to repeat in Wolof, one of many nation’s nationwide languages, “Mboloo Mooy gagner” — “Unity brings victory.”

If Senegal feels proud and patriotic nowadays, it’s thanks largely to its nationwide staff — and to Mr. Cissé, a former skilled participant who has reinvented Senegalese soccer and constructed what’s at present the most effective staff in Africa.

“The barometer of the Senegalese society right now is soccer,” Mr. Cissé mentioned in a current interview with The New York Occasions in Diamniadio, a newly constructed metropolis on the outskirts of Dakar the place the brand new stadium sits. “Individuals watch us play they usually’re proud to be Senegalese, proud to be African.”

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Mr. Cissé led the squad that gained the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this 12 months, the nation’s first soccer title. In doing so, he proved to the Senegalese those that considered one of their very own may succeed the place nobody else had.

European managers have lengthy coached many African nationwide groups, together with Senegal’s, however that’s altering, a shift embodied by Mr. Cissé.

From Algeria to Zimbabwe, Sudan to Burkina Faso, a rising era of African managers are constructing a brand new teaching tradition on the continent. Sixteen groups now have native coaches, and the three sub-Saharan African groups going to Qatar later this 12 months — Cameroon, Ghana and Senegal — all have former nationwide gamers as managers.

“Increasingly skilled gamers on the continent wish to be coaches,” mentioned Ferdinand Coly, a former teammate of Mr. Cissé’s. “Native experience is gaining floor.”

Though Mr. Cissé maintains that European coaches have executed rather a lot for African groups, that period is fading.

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Born within the southern Senegalese area of Casamance in 1976, Mr. Cissé moved to France when he was 9 and grew up within the suburbs of Paris, one of many world’s greatest swimming pools of soccer expertise.

His trajectory is much like many African gamers who had been raised in Europe or joined youth academies there. “After I was out, I used to be French, however at dwelling I used to be really Senegalese,” Mr. Cissé mentioned about talking Wolof and following the household’s customs whereas in France.

Mr. Cissé joined the youth academy of Lille, in northern France, at 14, and performed in French and English golf equipment within the Nineteen Nineties and 2000s, together with the French powerhouse Paris St.-Germain, Portsmouth and Birmingham Metropolis, which competed in England’s high league.

On the 2002 World Cup, he captained a Senegalese squad taking part in its first World Cup — one which shocked France, the world champions on the time, in a shock victory that many nonetheless consult with with heat nostalgia. Senegal reached the quarterfinals, the staff’s largest achievement to this point within the competitors.

As a coach, Mr. Cissé now appeals to each Senegalese gamers raised of their native nation, and to those that moved to France of their youth like him, constructing a bridge between the squad’s “locals” and its “binationals,” as they’re referred to among the many staff’s workers.

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It has been an extended street to success. When Mr. Cissé took over the staff in 2015, Senegal had been performing poorly on the Africa Cup of Nations and had did not qualify for the final three World Cup editions. Mr. Cissé’s predecessors had been fired one after one other.

Seven years later, Mr. Cissé, nicknamed “El Tactico,” for his environment friendly however restrained method to the sport, will deliver Senegal to its third World Cup and his second one as a coach. The period when African groups had been “observing,” is over, he says, and one will win the coveted trophy at some point.

“Why not us?” he mentioned.

Régis Bogaert, a former French youth coach of Mr. Cissé’s at Lille and now his deputy on the Senegalese staff, mentioned Mr. Cissé had conveyed a way of mission to his gamers. “He’s making many individuals wish to be the subsequent Aliou Cissé in Senegal and in Africa,” Mr. Bogaert mentioned.

Soccer, a nationwide ardour, is in every single place in Senegal, whether or not within the youth academies nurturing future abilities, or on Dakar’s seashores, empty building websites and pitches dotting town’s corniche alongside the Atlantic Ocean.

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“To be the coach of the nationwide staff right now is to be a politician,” mentioned Mr. Cissé, who typically repeats that he lives in Senegal and feels the nation’s stress each day, not like his gamers or the international coaches who reside overseas. “It’s about realizing the financial system, the tradition, the schooling and historical past of your nation.”

His humorousness and vogue tastes have additionally helped along with his recognition: Mr. Cissé typically wears shiny white sneakers and thick black sq. glasses, and he retains his dreadlocks below a New York Yankees or Crew Senegal cap, giving him the air of a cool father. He has 5 kids, whom he makes sound as difficult to handle because the nationwide staff.

If Mr. Cissé has shared Senegal’s largest successes, he has additionally skilled among the nation’s worst traumas. In 2002, he misplaced 11 kinfolk in a shipwreck that killed greater than 1,800 passengers off the coasts of Senegal and Gambia.

Senegal’s victory on the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this 12 months got here 20 years after Mr. Cissé missed a penalty within the ultimate of the identical event, depriving the staff of its first trophy again then — a reminiscence that lengthy haunted his nights, he mentioned.

Since then, Senegal has been having happier days on the pitch, and the nationwide pleasure surrounding the staff was on full show final month when Senegal defeated Egypt in a penalty shootout in its first recreation in Diamniadio’s stadium.

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Some followers mentioned that they had slept exterior the stadium the evening earlier than to verify they obtained the most effective seats. Hours earlier than kickoff, hundreds extra lined as much as enter, the sounds of whistles and drums filling the air.

“It’s a fantastic day for Senegal,” mentioned Sally Diassy, a French-Senegalese 30-year-old who lives in France and mentioned she was visiting Senegal to assist her favourite staff.

The jubilation on show after the win echoed the triumphant return of the Senegalese gamers after they gained the Africa Cup of Nations in February. Tens of hundreds of followers greeted them as they paraded within the streets of Dakar. President Macky Sall rewarded the staff and Mr. Cissé’s workers with some land within the capital and in Diamniadio, together with about $83,000, an exorbitant sum that set off some minor protests in a rustic the place almost half of the inhabitants lives below the poverty line.

However some gamers have additionally given again: Sadio Mané, the staff’s star, has constructed a hospital in his native village. Kalidou Koulibaly, the captain, purchased ambulances for his father’s village.

“Gamers wish to be position fashions in their very own nation,” mentioned Salif Diallo, a veteran soccer journalist who has adopted Mr. Cissé’s profession as a participant and a coach. “This staff is altering the notion that Senegalese have of themselves.”

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Those that know Mr. Cissé say that after he’s executed with the nationwide staff, he’ll wish to play a better position for his nation.

“I’ve tried to set an instance,” Mr. Cissé mentioned of his profession as each participant and coach. “If a Senegalese participant strikes to Birmingham or Montpelier or wherever I’ve performed tomorrow, I hope he shall be welcomed as a result of they’ll keep in mind that Aliou Cissé was an excellent man.”

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World

Wednesday Briefing

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Wednesday Briefing

Israel and Hamas are close to a deal on a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages there, Antony Blinken, the U.S. secretary of state, said yesterday. “It’s closer than it’s ever been before,” he said. “But right now as we sit here we await final word from Hamas on its acceptance. And until we get that word, we’ll remain on the brink.”

Negotiators said Hamas seemed ready to accept the deal, including its details about the exchange of Palestinian prisoners for hostages and the specific movements of Israeli troops as they withdraw from positions in Gaza, a person familiar with the talks said last night.

The person said Israel was also locked in on the agreement, and that both sides seemed prepared to announce their acceptance of it in the very near future. Neither Israeli nor Hamas officials have publicly confirmed their positions. Here’s what we know about the proposal.

Gaza: An analysis in The Lancet found that Palestinian deaths from bombs and other traumatic injuries may have been undercounted by 40 percent during the first nine months of the war.

Yoon Suk Yeol today became the first sitting South Korean president to be detained for questioning by criminal investigators, after striking a deal with law enforcement officials that ended a weekslong standoff. He has been accused of insurrection in connection with his short-lived declaration of martial law last month.

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In a video message, Yoon said he had agreed to submit to questioning to prevent a “bloody” clash between his bodyguards and the police. But he called the investigation and the warrant to detain him illegal. Here’s what to know about South Korea’s leadership crisis.

Investigators have 48 hours to question Yoon, after which they could apply for a separate warrant to formally arrest him. Separately, the Constitutional Court is deliberating whether the National Assembly’s Dec. 14 impeachment of Yoon was legitimate and whether the president, currently suspended, should be permanently removed from office.

Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary, emerged from a tense confirmation hearing yesterday with the Republican Party’s support intact. A Senate vote on whether he should lead the Pentagon — a department with three million employees and a budget of $849 billion — could come as soon as Monday.

Over hours of questioning, Democrats quizzed Hegseth about sexual misconduct allegations — Hegseth was accused of rape in 2017 — and his drinking habits. They called him unfit to lead the Pentagon and grilled Hegseth, a former Fox News host, on his long history of disparaging comments about women in the military.

What’s next: It was unclear whether Hegseth had left the hearing with the votes he needed. If all Senate Democrats oppose him, Hegseth will have to secure the backing of at least 50 of the 53 Republicans in the chamber.

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Related: A report was released yesterday that detailed the special counsel’s investigation into Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election. Here are four takeaways.

The Maha Kumbh Mela festival in India begins this week. It is expected to draw up to 400 million Hindu pilgrims to the banks of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, in what would be the world’s largest gathering.

The ceremony happens every 12 years and centers on a series of holy baths. But it has also become an important political event. For Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it is a chance to promote his right-wing party.

All-night diners are a signature New York institution. But in a city that supposedly never sleeps, they’re disappearing as costs rise and habits change.

Priya Krishna, a reporter for The Times, spent a Friday night at Kellogg’s Diner in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, dining nonstop from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. “Surprisingly, I drew no scrutiny from the staff for my hourslong stay,” she writes, “a heartening reminder that no other place will welcome you as unconditionally as an all-night diner.”

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Read about Priya’s night of pecan pie, lost treasures and Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”

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South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol arrested: report

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South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol arrested: report

Suspended South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has reportedly been arrested over insurrection charges stemming from his ill-fated martial law declaration last month.

Yoon’s detention was reported Wednesday by Yonhap, one of the country’s largest news outlets. A warrant for his arrest, initially requested after he failed to show up for questioning, has been out since Dec. 31.

Police dispatched some 3,200 officers to the president’s sprawling hillside estate in Seoul, according to Reuters, where he has spent weeks in hiding whilst surrounded by a personal security detail.

Video shows officers closing in on Yoon’s residence, according to Reuters, where hundreds of his supporters had already gathered to protest on his behalf. Earlier, they were reportedly seen pushing through a group of them.

SOUTH KOREA’S IMPEACHED PRESIDENT AVOIDS ARREST ATTEMPT AFTER HOURSLONG STANDOFF

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A previous attempt to detain Yoon was called off on Jan. 3 following a six-hour standoff between military guards and the president’s security staff. 

“As I have repeatedly emphasized the need for prevention of physical conflict between state agencies,” Acting President Choi Sang-mok said in a statement Wednesday. “I will sternly hold those responsible if unfortunate events occur.”

Authorities are making a second attempt to detain suspended South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol following last month’s martial law declaration. (South Korea Presidential Office via AP, File)

Executing a warrant for Yoon’s arrest has proven difficult for investigators, as the president’s legal counsel insists it is impossible to do so under a law barring non-consensual searches of locations potentially linked to military secrets.

Yoon’s lawyers have also decried such a warrant as an illegal means of publicly humiliating him.

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ARREST WARRANT ISSUED FOR IMPEACHED SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT AS POLITICAL CRISIS DEEPENS

The arrest warrant is the first ever to be levied against a sitting South Korean president. Yoon’s warrant stems from his declaration of martial law on Dec. 3 out of apparent frustration with the opposition-dominated parliament’s refusal to pass key items on his political agenda.

The move was decried within South Korea and abroad, where analysts expressed shock at the sudden and unprecedented move in what is typically one of Asia’s most stable democracies.

Officers close in on Yoon residence

Police officers are seen closing in on suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol’s residence in Seoul, South Korea, alongside investigators of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials. (REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji)

Parliament unanimously rejected Yoon’s declaration, and subsequently suspended him on Dec. 14 in a 204-85 vote that included members of his own party. 

Yoon will be formally impeached should the Constitutional Court uphold the motion with a three-fourths majority.

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The court’s next hearing is scheduled for Thursday.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Looking for a job in IT? These countries are desperate for new hires

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Looking for a job in IT? These countries are desperate for new hires

Over two-thirds of large companies struggle to fill their IT roles. What are the highest-paid jobs? Which countries are most in need?

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As the IT sector continues to grow, thousands of European companies are having trouble filling the many positions available.

According to 2024 Eurostat data, 57.5% of EU businesses can’t recruit all the necessary ICT specialists.

The gap between labour demand and actual employment has grown by 20% in the past ten years.

Large businesses are facing the biggest challenges.

Sixty-eight per cent of them are unable to fill all their ICT specialist positions, followed by medium (59.2%) and small-sized enterprises (53.4%).

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Germany, the Czech Republic, Malta, Austria, and Luxembourg are the countries most in need of ICT specialists, with at least 65% of businesses facing shortages.

The percentages are even higher for large enterprises: 84% in Malta, 80% in Germany, 79% in the Czech Republic, 78% in Slovenia, 76% in Austria, 75% in Luxembourg, 73% in Latvia, 72% in Hungary and 71% in Croatia.

Spain, Poland, and Bulgaria have the least hiring problems, although at least 30% of companies in these countries still face ICT shortages.

What are the highest-paid IT positions?

The main difficulties in recruitment, according to Eurostat, are a lack of applications, insufficient qualifications and experience, and high salary expectations.

Salaries in the ICT sector have consistently outpaced average wages in Europe in the last decade, according to the 2024 OECD Digital Economy Outlook. In the EU, in particular, annual wages grew by 0.24% compared to 0.20% in the rest of the economy.

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Recruitment specialists Robert Walters have listed the top-paid ICT jobs in countries including Germany, which seems to be struggling the most in the EU to recruit specialists.

The highest-paid role is Chief Information Technology Officer, with an annual base of €150k for employees with at least three years of experience, to €180k for those with at least eight years.

The consultancy role in the highest bracket is the SAP/ERP one, with a base of €100k. (SAP ERP is an enterprise resource planning software.)

Data engineer and data scientist positions are both in the €100-120k bracket.

Video editor • Mert Can Yilmaz

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