BAMAKO, Mali (dpa) – When the talk turns to youth football in Africa the countries that spring to mind are Ghana, Nigeria and – to a lesser extent – Cameroon. Few will think of Mali.
Yet the small West African state has become one of the powerhouses of African youth football.In fact, when the 16 best under-17 football teams in the world gather in the Caribbean state of Trinidad and Tobago later this year, one famous name in youth football will be missing Ghana.In the last five under-17 World Cups, the Black Starlets have not finished outside the top three, winning it twice and finishing runners-up on two occasions.But while the Ghanaians will be absent in the Caribbean, Mali will be there. Just as they were at the finals in Egypt in 1997 and two years later in New Zealand.Mali’s achievements in youth football over the last ten years have been a remarkable success story.It was the realisation that they could not compete with the likes of Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon at senior level that persuaded sports authorities to turn to youth football in a bid to gain recognition.They decided that they not only needed good coaches, they needed somebody who had an understanding of African football and had participated at the highest level.They found just the man in Sidi Bekaye Magassa.For some, the choice might have been surprising. Magassa is a FIFA referee who officiated at several Nations Cup finals and was also on the list of referees to officiate at the 1998 World Cup finals.That dream, however, never materialised as he was taken off the list after making a mistake in a first-round match at the finals of the Nations Cup in Burkina Faso in 1998.He is now concentrating on his task of making sure that Mali achieve as much as they can in youth football.“A few years ago, we looked at our football and we realised that we needed to do something if we wanted to develop. We do not have as much money as most of the other African countries and this prevented us from putting all our resources and effort into the senior team.”One of the first things that the football authorities introduced to achieve their goal of taking on the best in African youth football was to start competitive competitions at the youth level.“Our football is divided into geographical zones and the youth leagues are played in these zones. All the top teams from one area then go through to the national championships that are held once a year. It is here that we see some of our best youth players in action,” Magassa said.“Some of the youngsters who are in our national youth teams, play their club football at the highest level and that has also worked in our favour as they become stronger.”That their policy is bearing dividends is clearly evident from some of the opponents that Mali has beaten on route to success.Earlier this year, they beat Cameroon at the finals of the African under-17 championships and held eventual winners Nigeria to a 1-1 draw before finally succumbing on penalties.They finished third after Guinea, who had won the other semi- final, was kicked out of the competition following FIFA’s decision to suspend the country’s football association.Two years earlier they beat Morocco to qualify for the finals and there caused a major upset by topping their group, which included both Ghana and Nigeria. They again finished third after beating Cameroon in the play-off match.Magassa is proud at these achievements.“We have worked very hard and we have a bunch of talented players who are helped by good coaches. We prepare fully for these tournaments and this helps us achieve our potential,” he said.He is realistic to realize that it will take a while before these achievements reflect on the senior side.“We do not have many players based in Europe, but with our success at continental and world championships, some of our players are bound to go overseas. Once this has happened and they develop further, our senior team will also profit.”But until such time, Mali will continue making waves in continental and world youth football. Magassa is hoping that 15 other countries will find this out in Trinidad and Tobago later this year.
