Manchester United’s Sekou Kone is close to a senior call-up for Mali, according to manager Tom Saintfiet.
Kone is currently with Mali u20s at the Maurice Revello tournament in France, formerly known as the Toulon Tournament, after it was decided he’d benefit from taking part in the prestigious youth tournament which dates back to 1967.
But Kone is on the cusp of the senior squad as Saintfiet told reporters “Kone is one of two young players in the squad, alongside Barcelona’s Ibrahim Diarra, who will soon join the national side.”
Kone has been on Saintfiet’s radar for awhile with the manager saying in November 2024, “he will first have to complete his training at Manchester United and we will not fail to give him a chance at the appropriate time,” via Africa Foot.
“Playing with Manchester United is not an end in itself, he must progress in certain aspects to be able to have a chance with the first team.”
In the meantime, Kone is with the u20s where he came off the bench in a 1-2 loss to Panama yesterday.
Despite only playing the final 13 minutes, Kone made an instant impact when he was on the end of a heavy challenge from Jose Alfredo Marengo Armuelles which saw the Panamanian player sent off.
Fortunately, Kone escaped any lasting damage as he sprung back up after what was a dangerous challenge. Kone then provided the assist for a late goal from Wilson Samake but ultimately it wasn’t enough to snatch a point.
Mali now prepare to take on France before rounding out the group stage against Saudi Arabia. If Mali can advance, potential other opponents include Japan, Denmark, Mexico, and Congo.
The Maurice Revello tournament is no stranger to spring boarding young talents’ careers with former player of the tournaments including Thierry Henry and Alan Shearer but closer to home, United’s latest signing Matheus Cunha finished as the tournaments top scorer in 2019.
Recent years have also seen Alejandro Garnacho represent Argentina at the tournament in 2022.
Kone isn’t far away from the senior side not just at international level but also at club level, featuring under Ruben Amorim during the post season Asia tour.
A combative midfielder with an eagerness to progress the ball, Kone possesses many of the tools to make it at the top level but the club have taken their time with the youngster who was signed directly from Mali side Guidars FC last summer.
While settling in England and still learning the language, a number of United’s academy coaches have also been taking French lessons in order to converse more with Kone and to make him feel at home.
Kone will step up to senior football shortly but it yet to be seen whether his debut will be at United, potentially on loan, or even on the international stage with Mali.
Picture: Sekou Koné signing for Man United, posted on Instagram
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Colm Murphy
A football obsessed Canadian who moved to England to enjoy the beautiful game. Colm has been keen follower of Manchester United’s famed academy since seeing a fresh faced Adnan Januzaj for the club’s u18s and has been writing about football with a focus on youth development for over 10 years.
