Marked for Siyabonga Mkhize
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad19 Nov 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” US Bougouni may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Player ratings19 Nov 2029
Defensive actions: 25, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad19 Nov 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings19 Nov 2029
A performance of 8.90 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings19 Nov 2029
Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match17 Nov 2029
It finished 1‑0, and it was Daniel Simon’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to US Bougouni.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad22 Oct 2029
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Player ratings22 Oct 2029
Defensive actions: 25. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad22 Oct 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings22 Oct 2029
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.33, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings22 Oct 2029
Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match20 Oct 2029
US Bougouba made US Bougouni work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings22 Oct 2029
A defender's afternoon for Issa Tounkara
Defensive actions: 19. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad22 Oct 2029
The manager makes an example of Michael Okoh
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market22 Oct 2029
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Victor Peter’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market10 Sep 2029
Kalifa Diaby has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around US Bougouni they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad10 Sep 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Geoffrey Ochieng commits to US Bougouni for another 2 years.
Market10 Sep 2029
The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. US Forces Armees moved on, Amadou Haidara reports back to US Bougouni, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.
Squad10 Sep 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad10 Sep 2029
62 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad10 Sep 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Michael Okoh, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market11 Jun 2029
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what US Bougouni can pretend not to have heard.
Squad11 Jun 2029
68 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad11 Jun 2029
22 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Market11 Jun 2029
The bid was some way short and US Bougouni did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Squad11 Jun 2029
Waly Diabaté was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad11 Jun 2029
The manager makes an example of Poni Reatile
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market2 Apr 2029
Kalifa Diaby has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around US Bougouni they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad2 Apr 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match31 Mar 2029
Whatever happens, US Bougouni do not lose
6 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
Match31 Mar 2029
It finished 1‑0, and it was Hamari Diaby’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to US Bougouni.
Squad2 Apr 2029
The manager makes an example of Yonatan Shani
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings2 Apr 2029
Defensive actions: 19. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings2 Apr 2029
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.25, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings2 Apr 2029
Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings2 Apr 2029
Defensive actions: 17. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market5 Mar 2029
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at US Bougouni, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad5 Mar 2029
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad5 Mar 2029
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Market5 Mar 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at US Bougouni is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad5 Mar 2029
Waly Diabaté in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings5 Mar 2029
A performance of 8.84 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match3 Mar 2029
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Abbati Musa. 2‑0 against AS Police, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Squad5 Mar 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom5 Mar 2029
$848.3K on the table at US Bougouni
The board have answered with money instead of encouragement, which is the only answer a manager ever wants. Spending it well is now entirely his problem.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market5 Feb 2029
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad5 Feb 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” US Bougouni may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market5 Feb 2029
Only the photograph left for Kalifa Diaby
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kalifa Diaby will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around US Bougouni the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad5 Feb 2029
Waly Diabaté in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad5 Feb 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings5 Feb 2029
Marked 8.51 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Squad5 Feb 2029
Waly Diabaté is in the form of his life
A season average of 7.31 with 7 goals behind it. Opponents have started planning around him, which is the sincerest compliment football pays.
Player ratings5 Feb 2029
Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Boardroom5 Feb 2029
$848.3K on the table at US Bougouni
The board have answered with money instead of encouragement, which is the only answer a manager ever wants. Spending it well is now entirely his problem.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market18 Dec 2028
Stéphane Acka hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what US Bougouni can pretend not to have heard.
Match18 Dec 2028
20 points on the board and a place in the leading group. Nobody at the ground is saying the word out loud yet.
Match16 Dec 2028
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Squad18 Dec 2028
Waly Diabaté was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Player ratings18 Dec 2028
Marked 9.06 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Match16 Dec 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Victor Peter. 2‑1 against Binga, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Squad18 Dec 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings18 Dec 2028
Marked 8.41 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Player ratings18 Dec 2028
Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad13 Mar 2028
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Player ratings13 Mar 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 24 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Squad13 Mar 2028
Waly Diabaté in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at US Bougouni this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings13 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad13 Mar 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Moussa Diallo, and the manager let it.
Squad13 Mar 2028
10 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.
Match11 Mar 2028
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Binga defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
Market13 Mar 2028
The name of Younes Idder keeps appearing in other people's back pages. US Bougouni say nothing, which says plenty.
Player ratings13 Mar 2028
5.60 on the card. Some afternoons a footballer looks like a man who has only just been introduced to the game, and this was one of them.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market21 Feb 2028
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Match21 Feb 2028
36 points on the board and a place in the leading group. Nobody at the ground is saying the word out loud yet.
Squad21 Feb 2028
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; US Bougouni are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Squad21 Feb 2028
Moussa Diallo was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Player ratings21 Feb 2028
Defensive actions: 21, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings21 Feb 2028
Successful dribbles: 20. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match19 Feb 2028
It finished 1‑0, and it was Moussa Diallo’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to US Bougouni.
Squad21 Feb 2028
7 goals and a season average of 7.34. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
Squad21 Feb 2028
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Itumeleng Zungu commits to US Bougouni for another 3 years.