Football - Lens: Mamadou Sangaré, the Malian nugget in Ligue 1

The story is beautiful, and the parallel exceptional. In 2025, Mamadou Sangaré, Malian midfielder, silky left foot and a breathtaking combativeness, recalls the great hours of another lefty who shone with the Sang et Or a few years ago: Seydou Keïta. L'Aigle left a beautiful mark in the northern club, and today, it is the turn of its 'successor' to shine.

 It must be said that Mamadou Sangaré quickly established himself as a key element in the Lens team. He has played 14 games this season in Ligue 1, including 13 as a starter, for 1 goal and 1 decisive pass. His presence, his aura, his quality of recovery and projection with or without a ball make him one of the best midfielders in the French championship.

His coach, Pierre Sage, is also impressed about him.

 “It does not rise in power since we had the beginnings of all these beautiful things. It rises with regularity in its power. To talk about intensity, he showed very beautiful emotional and cognitive intensities. And today, he gained volume in that intensity. As a result, he loses fewer and fewer balls. He recovers more and more. It has an impact on situations where the opponent is going to be unbalanced. He also scored a goal. He had even had a big situation against Marseille. In any case, his game opens up to many more things because his level of performance is increasingly regular, stable.”

 The AFCON to explode
Arrived at the end of August in Lens, Mamadou Sangaré signed for only 8 million euros from Rapid Vienne (Austria). A derisory sum for the Malian who, in just three months, replaced Andy Diouf, who left for Inter Milan. Nicknamed 'Gaucher' in Mali, he has today a reputation established in Ligue 1. The one who has 9 caps with the Eagles impresses with his physical showdown, his technical accuracy and his already strong character.

Qualities that could also impress during the AFCON 2025. Mali will need it in Group A where they will face host country Morocco, Zambia and the Comoros.