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Shooting Stars keeper Mamadou Jalloh lauds teamwork in goalless with Zambia
by Football Sierra Leone

Shooting Stars’ Mamadou Jalloh lauds teamwork in goalless with Zambia

Sierra Leone debutant and IF Bromby goalkeeper Mamadou Walle Jalloh noted his joy after Sierra Leone and Zambia played to a scoreless draw at the Suez Canal Stadium on Sunday.

Keeper Jalloh stressed in international competitions the need for teamwork after both sides played to a draw in their first game of Group A in the CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations.

“๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ž๐š๐ฆ ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐ž ๐ ๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ž.โ€ Jalloh said in the post-game interview, “๐€๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฐ๐š๐ฌ ๐š ๐ก๐š๐ซ๐ ๐ ๐š๐ฆ๐ž ๐š๐ ๐š๐ข๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ ๐š ๐ ๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ž๐š๐ฆ, ๐ˆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ค ๐ฐ๐ž ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐š๐ฒ๐ž๐ ๐›๐ž๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐š๐ฌ ๐š ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฉ. “๐–๐ž ๐ฐ๐ž๐ซ๐ž ๐ฎ๐ง๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ง๐š๐ญ๐ž ๐ญ๐จ๐๐š๐ฒ. ๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ž๐š๐ฆ ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐ž ๐ ๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ž.โ€

When asked about his composure during several moments when Zambia was on the break, he replied, “๐ˆ ๐š๐ฆ ๐š๐ฅ๐ฐ๐š๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐œ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž๐ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐š๐ฐ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐œ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ ๐š๐ฆ๐ž ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ฎ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ. ๐๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐ž ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ, ๐ˆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ค ๐ˆ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฐ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ญ๐จ๐๐š๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ž๐š๐ฆ๐ฆ๐š๐ญ๐ž๐ฌ.”

Sierra Leone’s next match is against the host nation Egypt, who defeated South Africa at the Cairo International Stadium on Sunday, topping the table.

๐ˆ ๐š๐ฆ ๐š๐ฅ๐ฐ๐š๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐œ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž๐ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐š๐ฐ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐œ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ ๐š๐ฆ๐ž ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ฎ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ. ๐๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐ž ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ, ๐ˆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ค ๐ˆ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฐ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ญ๐จ๐๐š๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ž๐š๐ฆ๐ฆ๐š๐ญ๐ž๐ฌ
๐ˆ ๐š๐ฆ ๐š๐ฅ๐ฐ๐š๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐œ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž๐ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐š๐ฐ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐œ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐š๐œ๐ค๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ ๐š๐ฆ๐ž ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ฎ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ. ๐๐ž๐œ๐š๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐ž ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ฌ, ๐ˆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ค ๐ˆ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฐ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ญ๐จ๐๐š๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ž๐š๐ฆ๐ฆ๐š๐ญ๐ž๐ฌ
Winning U20 Cup of Nations start for host nation Egypt
by Football Sierra Leone

Winning U20 Cup of Nations start for host nation Egypt

Egypt began the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations, Egypt 2025, with a 1-0 win over South Africa at Cairo International Stadium on Sunday evening.

This match followed an exciting opening ceremony and was the second game of Group A, after Zambia and Sierra Leone played to a goalless draw earlier in the day.

Mohamed Abdallah scored the winning goal for Egypt in the 62nd minute. He received a great pass from Mohamed Raafat during a quick counterattack and calmly finished to put the ball past the South African goalkeeper, exciting the home fans.

Egypt controlled most of the early game, but South Africa started to find their rhythm and almost scored when Mfundo Vilakazi hit the post from long range within the first 10 minutes.

The South African team created several chances but faced strong defense from Egyptโ€™s players and goalkeeper. Gopolang Taunyanaโ€™s late header nearly equalized the score, but the goalkeeper made the save, and Egypt stood firm under pressure.

Despite dealing with multiple injuries and making three substitutions in the first half, Egypt showed resilience. They stuck to their game plan and earned the three points.

With this win, Egypt sits at the top of Group A after the first round of matches. Their next game is against Sierra Leone on Wednesday, while South Africa will play Tanzania.

Egypt is aiming for their fifth U-20 continental title, having won it in 1981, 1991, 2003, and 2013. In this tournament, the top four teams will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile later this year, making this strong start important for Egypt as they begin their campaign in front of enthusiastic home supporters.

Zambia and Sierra Leone share opening U20 AFCON spoils
by Alie Bittar @bittar32

Zambia and Sierra Leone share opening U20 AFCON spoils

Sierra Leone made their U20 AFCON debut was impressive in the 0-0 draw of the opening match in Group A at the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations, held in Egypt in 2025.

The match, which took place at the Suez Canal Stadium on Sunday, was closely contested, with both teams struggling to capitalize on their chances. The game was energetic but lacked the clinical finishing necessary to secure a win.

Zambia, the winners of the 2017 edition, controlled possession for large portions of the match but faced frustration from a determined Sierra Leone defense. Joseph Sabobo stood out for the Young Chipolopolo, making several attempts that required saves from Sierra Leone goalkeeper Samba Bah, but he was unable to break through.

Sierra Leone, in their first appearance at this level, showcased their composure and created opportunities of their own. Samba Bah and Nathaniel Jalloh consistently threatened Zambia’s defense, while Alpha Turay nearly scored with a header early in the first half.

As the second half progressed, both teams became increasingly eager to find a winning goal. Zambia thought they had clinched a victory late in the game, with Emmanuel Mutale and David Simukonda coming close, but neither could find the net.

Sierra Leone came close to scoring as Samba Bah’s header was saved in the final moments of the match, resulting in a draw.

This leaves Group A competitive ahead of the later match between hosts Egypt and South Africa. While Zambia created several chances, they will regret their finishing, while Sierra Leone can be proud of their strong debut performance and look to build on it.

Both teams will now focus on their next matches to secure advancement to the quarter-finals, where the top two teams from each group and the two best third-placed teams will progress.

Egypt wrap-up preparations for U20 AFCON opener against South Africa
by FSL News

Egypt wrap-up preparations for U20 AFCON opener against South Africa

AFCON U20 hosts Egypt finished their preparations for their match against South Africa. The game will take place at 9 PM tomorrow, Sunday, at Cairo Stadium.

This match is the opening of the African Cup of Nations, which Egypt will host from April 27 to May 18. The tournament also serves as a World Cup qualifying event.

The final training session happened at Medina Stadium in Khalifa. During this time, the coach, Captain Osama Nabih, focused on specific strategies for the upcoming match. He urged his players to pay attention to the instructions and avoid distractions.

The players showed seriousness and dedication as they worked to earn a spot in the match lineup. Wadi Al-Harer’s special training was led by goalkeeping coach Captain Ayman Tahir. Captain Nabih also discussed the strengths and weaknesses of the South African team during a lecture before the last training session.

Performance analyst Ahmed Issam prepared a video report that highlighted South Africa’s strong organization and quick transitions from defense to attack.

Egypt’s national team is in the first group along with South Africa, Sierra Leone, Zambia, and Tanzania. The top two teams from each of the three groups will move on to the quarter-finals. The best third-place team will also qualify, giving teams finishing in the top four the chance to reach the World Cup.

๐‡๐ž๐š๐ ๐‚๐จ๐š๐œ๐ก ๐Œ๐จ๐ก๐š๐ฆ๐ž๐ ๐‹๐š๐ฆ๐ข๐ง ๐Š๐š๐ฆ๐š๐ซ๐š: โ€œ๐–๐ž ๐€๐ซ๐ž ๐‡๐ž๐ซ๐ž ๐ญ๐จ ๐Œ๐š๐ค๐ž ๐‡๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒโ€
by Football Sierra Leone

๐‡๐ž๐š๐ ๐‚๐จ๐š๐œ๐ก ๐Œ๐จ๐ก๐š๐ฆ๐ž๐ ๐‹๐š๐ฆ๐ข๐ง ๐Š๐š๐ฆ๐š๐ซ๐š: โ€œ๐–๐ž ๐€๐ซ๐ž ๐‡๐ž๐ซ๐ž ๐ญ๐จ ๐Œ๐š๐ค๐ž ๐‡๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒโ€

Ahead of Sierra Leoneโ€™s opening match against Zambia at the 2025 U20 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Mohamed Lamin Kamara addressed the media at the Suez Canal Stadium.

Kamara acknowledged the tough competition in Group A but expressed pride in his teamโ€™s spirit and preparation. โ€œ๐“๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐Ÿ๐ข๐ซ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐”๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ ๐€๐…๐‚๐Ž๐ ๐š๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ž๐š๐ซ๐š๐ง๐œ๐ž, ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐žโ€™๐ซ๐ž ๐ก๐ž๐ซ๐ž ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฉ๐š๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐œ๐ข๐ฉ๐š๐ญ๐ž, ๐›๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฆ๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ,โ€

he said. The squad includes 26 playersโ€”17 homegrown and 9 based abroadโ€”whom Kamara described as the best talents Sierra Leone has to offer.

With eyes firmly set on World Cup qualification, Kamara emphasized that reaching the semifinals is the teamโ€™s main goal. โ€œ๐–๐ž ๐ค๐ง๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฐ๐จ๐งโ€™๐ญ ๐›๐ž ๐ž๐š๐ฌ๐ฒ, ๐›๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ฐ๐žโ€™๐ซ๐ž ๐œ๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ž๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ๐ฒ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ฆ๐š๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐š๐ข๐ง๐ข๐ง๐  ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐œ๐ข๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐ž ๐จ๐ง ๐š๐ง๐ ๐จ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ฉ๐ข๐ญ๐œ๐ก,โ€ he added.

Speaking about opponents Zambia, Kamara praised their strength but insisted Sierra Leone is ready for the challenge. โ€œ๐–๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ข๐ž๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž๐ข๐ซ ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐š๐ฒ, ๐ข๐๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐Ÿ๐ข๐ž๐ ๐ฐ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ง๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ž๐ฌ, ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ž๐ฉ๐š๐ซ๐ž๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐ž๐ ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐œ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž๐ฆ. ๐–๐ž ๐ก๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐ง๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐  ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ž.โ€

Team captain Momoh I. Kamara reinforced the teamโ€™s focus and fitness, promising a committed performance.

Coach Kamara also thanked the Egyptian Football Association for the excellent facilities and warm hospitality at the Suez Canal Stadium.

SLFA Media Department