Afcon: Sadio Mane, Kalidou Koulibaly and Idrissa Gueye in Senegal’s 23-man squad

Senegal have released their 23-man squad for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Egypt, slated to commence this month.

Liverpool forward Sadio Mane who recently won the Uefa Champions League trophy, Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly and combative Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye top Aliou Cisse’s final squad.

Nantes striker Santy Ngom and Lorient midfielder Sidy Sarr were omitted. Also included in the list is Crystal Palace’s Cheikhou Kouyate, Inter Milan winger Keita Balde as well as Rennes forward Ismaila Sarr and Galatasaray frontman Mbaye Diagne who grabbed a hat-trick in their 7-0 thrashing of Real Murcia in Tuesday’s friendly game.

Editors’ Picks

As part of Senegal’s preparation for the Afcon, Aliou Cisse’s men will square up with West African neighbours Nigeria on Sunday.

The Terenga Lions’ best outing was in the 2002 edition where they finished as runners-up. They will hope to surpass that performance in this years’ edition.

Senegal will have to navigate their way past Group C rivals Kenya, Algeria and Tanzania to reach the knockout stages of the tournament. Their opening game is against the Taifa Stars on June 23.

Full Squad

Goalkeepers: Abdoulaye Diallo (Rennes, France), Alfred Gomis (Spal, Italy) and Edouard Mendy (Reims, France)

Defenders: Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli, Italy), Moussa Wague (FC Barcelona, Spain), Pape Abdou Cisse (Olympiacos, Greece), Salif Sane (Schalke,Germany), Youssouf Sabaly (Bordeaux,France), Lamine Gassama (Goztepe, Turkey), Saliou Ciss (Valenciennes, France), and Cheikhou Kouyate (Crystal Palace, England)

Midfielders: Alfred Ndiaye (Malaga, Spain), Santy Ngom (Nancy, France), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Everton, England), Keprin Diatta (Club Brugge, Belgium), Pape Alioune Ndiaye (Galatasaray, Turkey), Sidy Sarr (Lorient, France) and Henri Saivet (Bursaspor, Turkey).

Forwards: Ismaila Sarr (Rennes, France), Keita Balde (Inter Milan, Italy), Mbye Niang (Rennes, France), Moussa Konate (Amiens, France), Mbaye Diagne (Galatasaray, Turkey), Sada Thioub (Nimes, France), Sadio Mane (Liverpool, England)