ACTU

Senegal: Patrick Vieira's first squad list outlines a transition

FootReporter · 18 septembre 2026

Patrick Vieira has unveiled his first squad list as head of the Lions. Twenty-nine players have been called up for the upcoming international fixtures, with a group that already says something about the new Senegalese cycle: key players retained, returns, several new faces and a few notable absences.

A first selection that looks more like a controlled transition than a revolution.

Mané absent, but not sidelined

It is obviously the name that stands out: Sadio Mané does not appear in this first list.

But there is no question, for now, of talking about him being sidelined. Patrick Vieira explained that the forward was suffering from a physical issue and should return to the squad for the next gathering.

His absence remains symbolic nonetheless. At the opening of a new cycle, Senegal must gradually prepare for life after Mané, even if that moment is not yet on the agenda.

Koulibaly and Gana, the landmarks remain in place

Vieira has not decided to start from a blank page.

Kalidou Koulibaly is present and keeps the captain's armband, while Idrissa Gana Gueye is also part of the group. Around these two key players, several already-established players remain:

Pape Gueye
Pape Matar Sarr
Lamine Camara
Ismaïla Sarr
Iliman Ndiaye
Nicolas Jackson
Boulaye Dia

The new head coach is therefore keeping an experienced backbone on which he can gradually build his ideas.

A particularly visible transition at the back

It is perhaps in defense and in goal that the change appears most clearly.

Malang Sarr, Sadibou Sané and Lamine Sy join the group, while Mamour Ndiaye and Ngagne Demba Thiam are called up as goalkeepers.

After Édouard Mendy's international retirement, the goalkeeper position inevitably becomes one of the projects of this new cycle.

Vieira therefore already seems to be looking for the next elements of his defense rather than simply carrying over the hierarchies of the past.

The returns also reshuffle the deck

Vieira's first list also brings several players back into the fold.

Rassoul Ndiaye, Arona Sangante and Abdallah Sima return to the Tanière. Returns that reflect a willingness to reconsider certain cases and widen competition.

The attacking options remain particularly plentiful with:

Ismaïla Sarr
Iliman Ndiaye
Nicolas Jackson
Assane Diao
Abdallah Sima
Boulaye Dia
Issa Soumaré
Ibrahim Mbaye
Mamadou Diakhon
Pape Moussa Fall

Competition will therefore be fierce, particularly for the attacking spots.

The absences that raise questions

Several names familiar to the Senegalese public do not appear in this first selection. Pathé Ciss, Fodé Ballo-Touré, Abdou Diallo, Cheikh Sabaly and Bamba Dieng, among others, are not among the 29 players retained.

Their absence alone does not allow conclusions to be drawn about their international future. It mainly shows that Vieira intends to make his own choices and that the hierarchy is now liable to be reshuffled.

For these players, as for those who have just joined the group, the upcoming fixtures will help gauge their place in the new project.

A transition, not yet a revolution

This first list does not yet precisely draw the picture of Patrick Vieira's Senegal. But it already gives its outline.

Mané absent for physical reasons, Koulibaly and Gana still there, new profiles brought in, several returns and widening competition: the change of cycle is well underway.

Senegal is therefore not abruptly entering a new era. It is beginning to enter it.

The matches against Mozambique, Ethiopia and the Comoros will be the first opportunities for Vieira to turn this list into a genuine playing project.