Senegal name squad for Bafana
Demba Ba is among several high profile
casualties as Senegal kept just nine of the squad from the recent African
Nations Cup finals for a friendly against South Africa in Durban on Feb. 29.
The Newcastle United striker has been dropped
along with the likes of Mamadou Niang, Souleymane Diawara and Moussa Sow, who
recently moved to Fenerbahce in Turkey in a 10-million-euro transfer from
French champions Lille
Co-coaches Karim Sega Diouf and Aliou Cisse,
who are acting in a caretaker capacity after the firing of Amara Traore, have
promoted up several players from the country’s under-23 side for the first
match for Senegal since a disastrous Nations Cup campaign.
Traore was sacked earlier this month after
Senegal, one of the pre-Nations Cup favourites, lost all three group games at
the tournament in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.
Among those who survived the cull were Ba’s
new club mate Papiss Demba Cissé and Wigan Athletic midfielder Mouhamed Diame.
Back in the squad is Mame Biram Diouf, formerly on the books at Manchester
United striker who is now at Hannover in the Bundesliga.
Senegal squad:
Goalkeepers: Bouna Coundoul (unattached),
Khadim Ndiaye (ASC Linguere)
Defenders: Abdoulaye Ba (Academica Coimbra,
Portugal), Jacques Faty (Sivasspor, Turkey), Papa Gueye (Metalist Kharkov,
Ukraine), Kader Mangane (Stade Rennes, France), Cheikh Mbengue (Toulouse,
France), Pape Ndiaye Souare (Lille, France), Matar Thioune (Molde, Norway),
Zarco Toure (Boulogne-sur-Mer, France)
Midfielders: Stephane Badji (Sandals,
Norway), Mouhamed Diame (Wigan Athletic, England), Ricardo Faty (PAOK Salonika,
Greece), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Lille, France), Cheikh Kouyate (Anderlecht, Belgium),
Ndiaye Deme Ndiaye (Arles Avignon, France)
Forwards: Ibrahima Balde (Osasuna, Spain),
Papiss Demba Cisse (Newcastle United, England), Boubacar Dialiba Diabang (KV
Mechelen, Belgium), Mame Biram Diouf (Hannover 96, Germany), Moussa Konate
(Maccabi Tel-Aviv, Israel), Dame Ndoye (FC Copenhagen, Denmark).
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