FT African Legends Series: Salif Keita, a forgotten hero?

African football has much to thank for the legacy of a certain Salif Keita who played in Europe between 1967 and 1980. There is another famous person who goes by the name Salif Keita but he is an Afro-pop singer-songwriter from Mali. Our FirstTouch Legend Keita, is the uncle to the Seydou Keita who played for Barcelona recently. Let’s take you through the career of the goal scoring machine that earned our African Football Legendary status.

Background

Also known as ‘The Black Pearl of Bamako’, Salif Keita was born in Mali in December 1946. He moved to France in 1967 to pursue his career in soccer at AS Saint-Etienne where he won three Ligue 1 titles. Keita scored an astonishing 71 league goals in his two seasons at the club. He moved on to fellow Ligue 1 side Olympique de Marseille in 1972 after scoring 42 goals in his last season for his former club and failing to win any silverware. His time at Marseille was cut short after the club tried to force him to assume French nationality so that he could represent them on the international scene. Keita was a proud African and he refused those advances which saw him leaving for the Spanish side, Valencia. Racism was still rife during those days which is evidenced by a headline which read, “Valencia goes out to buy Germans and comes back with a black man.” However, he was loved by his new club who gave him the nickname, ‘La Perla Negra de Mali’ which translates to The Black Pearl of Mali. He later played for Sporting Clube de Portugal before moving to New England Tea Men in the MLS where he retired at the age of 34.

Contribution To The Game

Salif Keita was one of the first soccer players that shone in the Number 10 jersey and made it as famous as it is today. He dazzled fans in Europe with his amazing dribbling ability carrying that number at the back which inspired many players who followed. Soccer greats like Ronaldinho, Zinedine Zidane, and others have worn this shirt which is respected and usually reserved for the best players on the team. Without Keita carrying 10, the jersey might not have been as significant as it is present day football. The game has evolved over the years but much respect should be reserved for the Malian striker who left a mark in the sport which many now call their religion.

Soccer took its time to rise up in terms of popularity within the US. Many suggested that the culture in the country is a major reason why this is. They alluded that Americans are generally interested in sports in which there are a lot of scores. This affected their perception of soccer which sometimes has matches that end in goalless draws. During Salif Keita’s time, however, this would not have been a concern. The striker was famous for scoring goals. As mentioned earlier he scored a total of 71 goals in two seasons during his stint at AS Saint-Etienne. He was a joy to watch. These numbers are difficult to match in the present day with only a handful of players reaching these numbers on a consistent basis.  

Salif Keita left a legacy in the game. His nephew Seydou Keita carried the family torch after him as he played for Barcelona under Pep Guardiola. As football fans, nothing beats the feeling we get when we see a young player following in the footsteps of our former heroes. Think of Jay-Jay Okocha for example, and his nephew Iwobi. These youngsters are adored in the sport because they bring memories of players who shed their sweat, blood, and tears to entertain the millions of soccer fans who watch the games. Salif Keita was one of the players who inspired their family members to play soccer and supported them throughout their career. We have him to thank for that.

If you were wondering what type of a striker he was, think of Cristiano Ronaldo. Keita was ruthless in front of goal but also had the composure and trickery to create space for himself and beat opponents before rifling in a shot past the goalkeeper. He was also versatile and could play anywhere up front. If you recall how Edinson Cavani adjusted his game during his early years at PSG where he played out wide, that paints a picture of how Keita was when he was asked to play for Valencia. He had a football brain so it was easy for him to play in any position.

Image Credit: Bamada.net

Today, many players are seen moving to the MLS in the later stages of their career. Football greats such as Kaka, Steven Gerrard, David Beckham, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have all plied their trade in the US in their 30s. This was started by Keita who moved to the MLS in 1979 and has become a trend for many star players who are looking for some competition before retirement. The Malian forward has clearly left a mark on the game of soccer.

Also, we look at his ranking among FirstTouch African Legends. It is only fair to compare him with fellow African players who played in the same position. There are probably just three players ahead of him i.e. Eto’o, Rodger Milla and Didier Drogba. This is only because these other players were more consistent than him and played on the biggest stage for a long time. They also managed to win multiple African Player of the Year awards as compared to Keita’s sole accolade awarded in 1970.

Life After Football

1. In 1994, Keita created the first training center for professional football players in Mali

2. June 2005, he was elected president of the Mali Football Federation

3. A year later, the Confederation of African Football selected him as one of the best 200 African Soccer players of the past 50 years

4. Since 2007, he has been acting as a delegated minister of the Prime Minister of Mali

Sarr’s team makes it to the UEFA Europa League Final

Recently, we reflected on Bouna Sarr’s decision to reject Senegal for France. Today we look at his performance in a UEFA Europa League semifinal clash with RB Salzburg. The Marseille right-back was present and ever ready to pitch himself to Didier Deschamps, the French national team coach, as he represented his club in a competitive tournament. He was part of the team that won the first leg 2-0 and was hoping to replicate that kind of performance today. Marseille were rock solid at the back today thanks to Sarr and his teammates but the second half was a bit challenging for Marseille.

Amadou Haidara from Mali started off a Salzburg comeback by scoring from an amazing run that saw him finish past Pele after flying past 6 players. 1-0 at 53 minutes and Salzburg became dangerous. It was not long until they piled more pressure on Marseille for the second. This time, it was Bouna Sarr who was unlucky to score an own goal in the 65th minute. The scoreline was 2-0 at the end of the 90 minutes which meant that the tie was level on aggregate 2-2 so it needed to be settled in extra-time or eventually penalties if no team had scored. Lucky enough, the former happened as substitute Rolando came on to volley home from a corner kick in the 115th minute. Salzburg were gutted by this blow and did not make a difference in the end as the aforementioned Mali player got sent off. Marseille are through to the final thanks to Rolando’s goal. Another African born player who plays for Portugal.

Controversial Barton to become Fleetwood coach

The 35-year old midfielder who is currently serving his football match ban has been appointed to become the new head coach at low league Fleetwood. The midfielder is infamous for his free-spirited opinions and saying the most bizarre of things that one would not expect. He is very cocky, and it is quite shocking as to how Fleetwood have made this decision to trust the midfielder to lead their team to glory. The player has already represented some big clubs not just in England but in Europe as well as he has played for Newcastle, Manchester City, Burnley, Rangers, and Marseille. The player has signed a three year deal with the club and is expected to retire from being a player first that is after the 2nd of June where his ban will end.

He had this to say about the move, “I’m very excited by the challenge and the project at Fleetwood Town. It’s a club I’ve known for a long time, and a chairman I already have a very good relationship with.”

This move has brought some excitement to the chairman of the club who believes that the Barton will bring his experience and profile. A lot of optimism surrounds this move, but we all know what Joey is capable of. What happens when he does not agree with the chairman of the club or anyone above his pay grade? Will he throw a tantrum like he is known for doing or will he be mature and be smart about not placing himself in awkward situations? This is an interesting one. We will live to see how long this tale will last. Aren’t you as excited as well?

So near but yet so far for CSKA Moscow as they are knocked out by Arsenal

Arsenal went into the match with what they thought was a comfortable win after beating CSKA Moscow 4-1 at home. The club did not have Xhaka and Mkhitaryan who have been crucial to their success in the Europa League thus far. Elneny started in midfield with Wilshere and Ramsey and it was the Egyptian who would save Arsenal on the night. The match kicked off and the English side showed they were not interested in attacking because of the way they were playing the sideways passes. The gunners did not invest much into the first half with their closest chance of scoring only came from Lacazette who got his shot blocked for a corner kick. The belief of a win started to grow on the Russian side as the team started to take shots at Petr Cech. The aging goalkeeper eventually conceded a goal in the 39th minute when Chalov tapped into the net after Cech had punched the ball out from a shot and his defenders did not react quick enough. Kristijan Bistrovic’s furious half-volley shot almost made it 2-0 before the break but it sailed just wide. After the break, Moscow scored the second through Nababkin with an almost similar goal to the first. Egyptian midfielder, Mo Elneny, took up the responsibilities of creating chances in a match were Ozil was marked as he played a nice one-two with Welbeck before sliding a beautiful through ball that was coolly finished by the English forward. Danny Welbeck deserved that goal after doing the most of the defender who was marking him on the left flank prior to the goal. Ramsey scored the second for the gunners to make it 2-2 when Elneny again, slid a ball that passed two defenders and was met by the Welshman who chipped the ball over the goalkeeper. Many expected him to pass it to Ozil there who was in a better position to score but who cares now that the ball is in the back of the net. Another African player rescues an English club’s dream of European glory this season. One must wonder how much talent really is in that continent when these big clubs still wait for the African players to save them.

Atletico Madrid played Lisbon in the same competition today and lost the match 1-0. This means that they have gone through with a 2-1 aggregate. Both Atletico Madrid and Arsenal will be hoping to avoid each other in the semifinals. The UEFA Europa League draw will be held on Friday and only then will we find out about the teams that will face each other. Marseille and RB Salzburg are the other teams who have made it to this stage. Good luck at the draw!