FATY RANKS AMONG SENEGAL’S BEST PLAYERS AFTER IMPRESSIVE PERFORMANCES

An introvert standing almost two metres tall, the Casa Sports goalkeeper lived his dream a few months after his first call-up to the Senegal senior national team. The maiden call-up came in November last year for the matches against Togo and Congo in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers and this quickly transmuted into playing in the final of the 2021 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations final which they won completed his uncalculated expectation.

The dream still lives on for Faty, the native of Ziguinchor (southern Senegal), as they face Egypt – the team they defeated in the AFCON final – in the 2022 World Cup playoff for a place in the tournament to be held in Qatar later this year.

The 1999 born shot-stopper tells his story in his own words.

The Senegal Cup final, the turning point!

When asked the question of which match changed his young football career, the young goalkeeper born in 1999 does not hesitate: the final of the Senegal Cup on October 3, 2021.

“I was not captain but I felt that we have to do something in this final. We have to win for our generation. And personally, I won the Senegal Cup in U17 and three in U20 and I have to win this trophy which means a lot for our senior team and we gave everything to deserve this victory (1-0) against a great team Diambars. We gave it our all and I played my part. And in the end, we lifted the national trophy in front of an ecstatic crowd.”

First call against Togo and Congo in the qualifiers in November.

“I had a good Senegal Cup final but we all know that the Senegal team is well equipped with goalkeepers. With Sény Dieng’s setback (tested positive for Covid-19), the coach called on me. I had the opportunity to work with the best in this position with Edouard Mendy (Chelsea), the best goalkeeper in the world and Alfred Gomis (Rennes). By rubbing shoulders with these champions, we see the demands of high level football but also we see that these stars are so simple. It’s a far cry from the image you see on television. I never felt the difference and they supported me and I watched, learnt their training methods, their ball grips, their footwork and everything else.”

CAN 2021 in Cameroon.

“It’s simply extraordinary, living for more than a month with all these footballers. I learned a lot and worked a lot by telling myself that the goalkeeper of Casa Sports, representative of local football, could play with the Teranga Lions of Senegal during the senior AFCON. I was preselected several times in U20 but in the end, I was never selected so I put a lot of effort into my work. And at the AFCON, at one point, there was only Sény (Dieng) and me as goalkeepers, after Edouard and Alfred tested positive for Covid-19. And I can assure you that I was ready to play because I had been prepared in this way. I am a happy man and also I feel all the responsibilities weighing on my shoulders. And the players and the public of Senegal who welcomed me so I took it upon myself never to forget this. It was very beautiful and very friendly and I know that local football players can follow the same path but there is a coach who has to make choices that we all have to respect. And above all, work wherever you are assigned and take responsibility. At my level, before the AFCON and the national team invitation, my coach (Ansou Diadhiou) at the start of the season, gave me the armband as a prophetic sign.”

African champion and what next?

“With Senegal, now that we have won the title of African champion, the group will work harder to get qualification for the 2022 World Cup. It will not be easy but we are the defending champion team, everyone will try to bring us down, starting with the Pharaohs whom we defeated on February 6th. But we must respond and continue to please the Senegalese people and grow our national football. And after the national team, I would have time to dedicate myself to Casa Sports to get all the local trophies and try to get a professional contract outside.”