Keita Baldé: new setback for the former great hope of Senegalese football
Senegalese Keita Baldé during CAN 2021. AFP - KENZO TRIBOUILLARD
Text by: David Kalfa Follow
3 mins
Keita Baldé has been suspended until December 5 for a doping control violation in Italy, which jeopardizes the Spartak Moscow striker's participation in the 2022 World Cup. great hope of Senegalese football who, at 27, seems far from having met expectations.
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Will Keita Baldé play a fifth straight final phase with the Senegal team, after the 2017, 2019 and 2021 African Cups of Nations and the 2018 World Cup?
The African champion has been suspended until December 5 for a doping control violation in Italy while playing for Cagliari in the 2021-2022 season.
A situation that could deprive him of the 2022 World Cup (November 20-December 18), Senegal facing the Netherlands (November 21), Qatar (25) and Ecuador (29).
A big loss for the Lions?
Is the interested party really an important element within the den?
"
If we take into account the purely sporting aspect, there are players now ahead of him in the hierarchy, and above all who have proven that they could contribute by entering as substitutes
," said Mansour Loum, editor-in-chief of the Sport News site. Africa, and attentive observer of the Senegalese selection.
Keita Baldé has been losing momentum for a while in selection, and even seems to have accepted his role as a substitute.
However, he is highly appreciated by coach Aliou Cissé and by the other members of the group, for his state of mind.
In this, it is important when you know that in a selection, it can sometimes be difficult to find the right balance to have a good working atmosphere.
»
In the wake of Kylian Mbappé
In 2016, when he started with Senegal, the one who was born in Catalonia and trained at FC Barcelona did not however have the profile of a simple service ambianceur.
Keita Baldé Diao was then perceived as a great hope for Senegalese football, in the same way or almost as Sadio Mané.
It must be said that this versatile striker had achieved a 2016-2017 season with 16 goals in 31 Italian Championship matches with Lazio Rome, his first professional club.
So much so that AS Monaco recruited him in the summer of 2017 to digitally replace Kylian Mbappé, transferred to Paris Saint-Germain.
A surprising comparison with the French – the two players have different profiles – and difficult to assume for the binational.
After a mixed season, the ASM had also loaned him with an option to buy at Inter Milan, in 2018-2019.
The Milanese had not kept it, and Baldé had not been better in 2019-2020 with the Monegasques.
He was then loaned again, to Sampdoria (2020-2021) this time, before signing freely in Cagliari (2021-2022), then in Spartak Moscow last August, after having been announced for a time on the side of Al Ahly (Egypt).
A route that does not conform to the promises made a few years earlier.
“
As a youngster, he showed great things, but there is one point that should have been more challenging: it is the fact that he is not kept at La Masia
[le center de formation du Barça, NDLR], underlines Mansour Loum.
If he was as good and as promising, the Barcelonians would have done everything to keep him and integrate him into a project leading to the A team
.
He concludes: “
Honestly, given his performances over the last two seasons in club, I do not see which top club would take the bet to bet on him to revive him.
If you don't win at Sampdoria or Cagliari, it will be difficult to aim higher.
»
It's a strange journey for Keita Baldé if he were to sign with Al Ahly after all the Masia storytelling tt that… At one point, the LSS public booed Sadio to demand his entry… Football goes fast.
On the other hand, Al Ahly is much better than some European clubs eh 😂
— 🇸🇳 Babacar Ndaw FAYE 🎖 (@BNFAYE) August 23, 2022
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