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Aliou Cisse Announced As Senegal National Team Coach

Aliou Cisse Announced As Senegal National Team Coach

Former Senegal captain Aliou Cisse has been named as the new national team coach for his native country, according to the Senegal Football Federation.

Cisse comes into the coaching position following Alain Giresse’s sacking after Senegal’s disappointment at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) where the Lions of Teranga could not progress from a group that included South Africa, Algeria and eventual finalists Ghana.

With 2017 AFCON qualifiers set to begin in June, and the FIFA World Cup qualification campaign for Africa kicking off in October, the Senegalese authorities wanted to officially bring the new man on board, so that he could make preparations for those important qualification targets.

When Amara Traore was fired as Senegal coach in 2012, Cisse took over for a short while in a caretaker role, before Joseph Koto was put in charge. He is now being given the position in a full capacity in order to prove himself.

Cisse’s coaching experience is relatively limited, but he has coached the Senegal Under-23 side since 2013, acting as an assistant in the same side for a year before taking over.

As a player he was the national team skipper, while at club level he represented the likes of Lille and Paris Saint Germain in France, as well as Birmingham City and Portsmouth in England.

The Teranga Lions have a wealth of talent in the side, and will be hoping that the passion Cisse displayed as a leader and player for the national team will translate for his as a coach.