The 3 major absentees from Mali's squad for CAN 2025Mustapha Sangare/@CAFMali's head coach, Tom Saintfiet, has unveiled his list of players selected to compete in the Africa Cup of Nations – CAN 202...
The 3 major absentees from Mali's squad for CAN 2025
Mustapha Sangare/@CAF
Mali's head coach, Tom Saintfiet, has unveiled his list of players selected to compete in the Africa Cup of Nations – CAN 2025 in Morocco (December 21 – January 18).
The Belgian tactician has recalled Yves Bissouma, who returns after a long spell out, despite being embroiled in controversy over the use of nitrous oxide in England.
However, other players have not made the trip:
Moussa Sylla
Present for the September and October camps, the Schalke 04 striker was left out for the November international break. As a result, he has not been called up for CAN 2025.
His tally stands at six caps so far. His stats in Bundesliga 2 are far from poor (4 goals and 2 assists in 14 matches).
The left-back has fallen out of Saintfiet's plans. Not a regular at Brest (just 9 matches played), he hasn't been called up since last June. He has five appearances for the Mali Eagles.
Mustapha Sangare
Levski Sofia's striker is the most notable omission from this squad. With 9 goals and 4 assists in 23 matches, his absence is sparking debate, as many can't understand why the top Malian scorer of the season across all European leagues has been left out.
🚨 OFFICIEL : LA LISTE DU MALI FAITE PAR TOM SAINTFIET POUR LA PROCHAINE CAN MAROC 2025 ! 🇲🇱 pic.twitter.com/DkTH72MLh4
— Les Aigles Du Mali 🇲🇱🦅 (@AiglesDuMali_) December 11, 2025
Category: General Sports
