Ibrahim Sissoko has been one of Ligue 2's most consistent strikers for several years now. Once again this season, the Malian striker is the top scorer for Saint-Etienne.
At Saint-Etienne, all the lights are on at the moment. The residents of Geoffrey Guichard are in the thick of the fight for Ligue 1 status, in 4th place (41 pts), 5 points behind 2nd-placed Angers and 10 behind leaders Auxerre. On Saturday February 24, the Stéphanois secured a quiet weekend with a 2-1 win over Annecy on the 26th day of Ligue 2. Ibrahim Sissoko scored in the match. The Malian (who was capped for the first time in November 2023) scored his 10th Ligue 2 goal of the season. He is now Saint-Etienne's top scorer in the league, 6 points behind the leader, Caen's Alexandre Mendy.
The goal was also a sign of renewed confidence. Before taking part in the AFCON 2023 with Mali, Ibrahim Sissoko had gone 7 games without scoring. His last goal came on October 30, 2023. This drought came to an end on his return, with a goal against Troyes on February 12. He now has 2 goals in 3 matches. "The AFCON with Mali showed me other things. Now I'm back with the desire to experience other emotions with Saint-Étienne.I'm back with a group with the right mentality. Today, there's a different way of working, which I didn't really get to know before leaving for the national team, but I'm really enjoying these new experiences. We've found a serenity that we didn't have when I left. There were some complicated matches, and others where we gave ourselves a fright, like Bastia. There's a new awareness. We trust each other more. Something has changed in our mentality," he added.
A reliable striker
Ibrahim Sissoko's fine season is no fluke, however. The Mali international (3 caps, 1 goal) has scored at least 10 goals in his 5 seasons in Ligue 2. First with Niort (15 goals in 2019-2020 then 10 in 2021-2022). He then went on to score 13 with Sochaux in 2022-2023. However, the 28-year-old had an off-season in 2020-2021. This was due to a serious injury sustained in training.
Saint-Etienne, desperate to return to the top flight of French soccer, can count on Ibrahim Sissoko to help them get there.
