Barcelona have made a conscious effort to increase their recruitment of talent from West Africa over the last two years, and two more Senegalese talents have arrived for a trial period with the Catalan giants. Both Mouhamed Dabo and Elhadj Malick Cisse are currently cutting their teeth at Be Sport Academy in Dakar.
The Blaugrana have a partnership with the academy, and the two 16-year-olds have been given permission to spend 15 days on trial in Spain. Dabo is a defensive midfielder, while Malick Cisse is an attacking midfielder, and both have featured for Senegal‘s under-17 side. They arrive at the hand of Barcelona’s Chief Scout in Africa Moussa Kone, say Sport, who leads the recruitment effort across the continent.
More and more, top clubs are starting to put eyes on African youth football, as competition for top talents in Europe and South America grows. The most promising players in both continents are likely to command big fees as teenagers already, and it is no surprise that Barcelona are looking for cheaper alternatives, as they have shown by signing Aziz Issah and David Oduro.