2026 World Cup qualifiers: Mali without Yves Bissouma

Mali's head coach, Tom Saintfiet, announced this Friday, August 29, 2025, his squad list for the September training camp.

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The major absentee from the list is Yves Bissouma (41 caps, 5 goals). The Tottenham midfielder is not at his physical best at the start of this season.

On the other hand, Ousmane Camara has received his first call-up. The 22-year-old Angers player has made 19 appearances for France’s youth teams, including participation in the 2023 U20 World Cup.

Fourth in Group I (9 points), Mali will host Comoros (2nd with 12 pts) on September 5, before flying to Ghana to face the Black Stars (1st, 15 pts) on September 8.

Here is the squad list:

Goalkeepers:

Djigui Diarra (Young Africans)

Ismaël Diawara (IK Sirius)

Lassine Diarra (Olympique Lyonnais)

Defenders:

Sikou Niakaté (SC Braga)

Moussa Diarra (Alavés)

Amadou Danté (Arouca)

Fodé Doucouré (Le Havre)

Salim Diakité (Palermo)

Mamadou Fofana (New England)

Ousmane Camara (Angers)

Cheick Oumar Konaté (Clermont Foot)

Brahim Cissé (Schalke 04)

Midfielders:

Mohamed Camara (Al-Sadd SC)

Aliou Dieng (Al Ahly FC)

Mahamadou Doumbia (Royal Antwerp)

Mamadou Sangaré (Lens)

Lassana Coulibaly (US Lecce)

Kamory Doumbia (Brest)

Forwards:

Nene Dorgelès (Fenerbahçe)

Lassine Sinayoko (Auxerre)

Moussa Sylla (Schalke 04)

Mustapha Sangaré (Levski Sofia)

Mamadou Doumbia (Watford)

Mamadou Camara (Laval)

Gaoussou Diarra (Feyenoord Rotterdam)

Imed Ben Amara |

Editorar, fr

Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.