Eight years after their last appearance, Stade Malien are back in the group phase of the CAF Confederation Cup. Travelling to Brazzaville, they will face the Diables Noirs of Congo at the Stade Alphonse Massamba Débat (16h00 Gmt). The Malian club, which has rebuilt itself to return to the forefront, has set its sights on regaining its place on the African scene.
Stade Malien aims to conquer Africa this season
Not everyone can rise from the ashes. Stade Malien de Bamako, who have spent two consecutive years in an uncharacteristically lowly position on the domestic scene following disappointing league results, are determined to make a comeback. The 2009 CAF Cup winners are determined to make a deserved return to the group stage on the African stage. Their last participation dates back to 2015. In Group D of the competition, they will be joined by Berkane of Morocco, Sekkukune of South Africa and Diables Noirs of Congo, whom they face on Sunday, November 26.
With a fighting spirit, ambition, key players in the squad and convincing results, Stade Malien is looking good. These performances also suggest a gradual return to form. At the moment, an ounce of hope has appeared since the advent of the transitional board. At a time when the club was going through one of the darkest periods in its history, a light is appearing at the end of the tunnel. Stade Malien has regained a certain stability. The club's soccer section is now headed by Aguibou Bah, a businessman and head of FIFA's Forward program at FEMAFOOT.
Shooting rectified. Intelligent recruitment was carried out, notably with the arrival of Malian international players. These include defender Mamadou Yoro Diaby and midfielder Fady Coulibaly. Forwards Daouda Coulibaly and Adama Traoré, both of whom scored 3 goals in the league, have also strengthened the Stade Malien squad.In addition to them, expatriates Klegnime Kone, Douei and Issa have added value.
Reclaiming their place on the continental stage
An airtight defense, a consistent midfield and a prolific forward line - it's all there. Stade Malien are determined to regain their place on the continental stage. For this edition, our ambition is to reclaim our place on the African continent," says Aguibou Bah, president of the Stade Malien de Bamako soccer section. "This year, we want to go further in this competition, but by playing match by match".
Asked whether Stade Malien have the means to achieve their ambitions, he confirms that all the necessary steps have been taken to reach their objectives. "We've spared no effort to take part in this group phase. In terms of organization, finance and logistics, we've spared no expense. We've done everything possible to ensure that the team feels at ease. And to be able to compete well and achieve our objectives," he explains.
The players are in the best of conditions, in terms of travel, equipment and catering, and even in terms of preparation. The coaching staff, too, with all that goes with it," he continues, pointing out that "an African competition is all about reaching the last four. That is to say, the semi-final phase, but a successful competition means being able to win the trophy. Right now, we can say that we've had a successful competition. But as I said at the start, we're playing match by match. In order to achieve this objective, and to be able to win the trophy of this African competition," he stresses.
Winning back Africa
A few months ago, the atmosphere at Stade Malien was so unhealthy that it would have been hard to imagine this happening. From differences between supporters, some of them even called for the departure of sports managers. This counterproductive climate led the club's wise men to cut short the mandate of the then president, Cheick Diallo, and set up a transitional board to manage the club's affairs before a new executive committee was put in place. The transitional committee is chaired by Mamadou Samake. This is the same man who was one of the architects of the continental title won by the Bamako whites in 2009.
With the lull in the fighting, tempers flared again. At the end of the season, Stade Malien won the national cup against Onze Créateurs (1-0). Since the end of the 2022-2023 season, things have changed within the Bamako Blancs family. Ivorian Siaka Traoré, winner of the Coupe Nationale, was not reappointed. His soccer and incessant tactical choices during league matches were not to the fans' liking. He was replaced by Seckou Seck aka Backo, back after a brief spell in 2018. With the arrival of Backo, Stade Malien was eagerly awaited. It did not disappoint. To open this season's African campaign, it was a child of the club, Lassine Kouma, scorer of the winning goal in the Malian Cup final synonymous with qualification for the Confederation Cup, who showed his teammates the way against Liberia's Watanga (3-1 victory) in the first round. Also led by the rediscovered Ivorian Frank Tiessé, and a brace from the great Daouda Coulibaly, Stade Malien won the return leg by a wide margin (4-1).After a 2-0 win in Bamako, qualification for the group stage was a hard-fought affair against Burundi's Aigle (3-1).
Sekou Seck, had announced changes at the time of his presentation.
It is now visible. The players are making a pleasant impression, one that has been all too rare in recent years. Ineffective last year, the Blancs de Bamako are now impressively efficient in front of goal. In official matches since the start of their season, they have scored 20 goals, whereas last year it was difficult to score once in 9 league matches.
Technically at ease, the Stade Malien team show solidarity and, admittedly, sometimes lack concentration, but they give the image of a team concerned by the event, and this is perhaps where the main upheaval announced by the Malian coach lies. With the quality of their performance, the players were able to silence the critics who had surrounded the team for almost two years. Before the first day of the Malian national championship, they got the local season off to the best possible start, winning the "Super Cup" title for the new season against As Real, who were beaten 2-0. After a period of stagnation, Stade Malien seem to be back to their best this season. In any case, they're smiling again after two less than stellar seasons. Now, they want to reclaim their place in Africa.
