Marked for Oumar Allamine
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad25 Oct 2027
59 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aiglons lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad25 Oct 2027
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Aiglons will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad25 Oct 2027
A falling-out at Aiglons
Yannick Saleh and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
The manager makes an example of Oumar Allamine
“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.
Looking ahead25 Oct 2027
AS Algoy next, and one man in the Aiglons dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
The dugout25 Oct 2027
Abdramane Ndoram asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad18 Oct 2027
66 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Aiglons lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match16 Oct 2027
Beaten 0‑6 by Renaissance, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Squad18 Oct 2027
There were 9 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Aiglons will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The dugout18 Oct 2027
Oumar Allamine: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Aiglons have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad18 Oct 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Aiglons this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match16 Oct 2027
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 6 goals between Aiglons and Renaissance, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Boardroom18 Oct 2027
Nobody left the Aiglons dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
The dugout18 Oct 2027
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑6, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad6 Sep 2027
108 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aiglons lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match6 Sep 2027
Aiglons are in among the leaders
Position 3 and 51 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Squad6 Sep 2027
At 23 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.
Boardroom6 Sep 2027
Deadline passes with 16 signed and 2 gone
That is the business done at Aiglons until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Words exchanged at Aiglons
Yannick Saleh and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad6 Sep 2027
At 27 the improving is meant to be over, and it is not: 3 points better than a year ago. It happens to the ones who take the boring parts seriously.
The dugout6 Sep 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Abdramane Ndoram, and the manager let it.
The dugout6 Sep 2027
A promise honoured at Aiglons
Something was said to Oumar Allamine and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
Market6 Sep 2027
The name of Alboury Aboubakar keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aiglons say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad2 Aug 2027
A falling-out at Aiglons
Yannick Saleh and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets2 Aug 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad2 Aug 2027
The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Oumar Allamine has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.
Market2 Aug 2027
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Yannick Masra’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Ali Doungous has moved up it.
The dugout2 Aug 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ezechiel Abakar trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market19 Jul 2027
Aiglons say no — this time
The offer from AS Korofina for Christian Ramadjingaye was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Transfer targets19 Jul 2027
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Aiglons have done the hard part with US Moursal, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Squad19 Jul 2027
Yannick Saleh 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.
Transfer targets19 Jul 2027
Aiglons asked and US Moursal said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad19 Jul 2027
No place for Oumar Allamine in the new shape
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Aiglons are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
The dugout19 Jul 2027
The manager makes an example of Oumar Abba
“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.
The dugout19 Jul 2027
Yannick Masra asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Squad19 Jul 2027
Words at Aiglons training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ezechiel Allamine is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market19 Jul 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aiglons know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market21 Jun 2027
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Saleh Abba had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
Market21 Jun 2027
“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.
Loan watch21 Jun 2027
12 clean sheets on loan for Moussa Djimet
24 appearances at Foullah Edifice and the goals have stopped going in. US Moursal lent out a goalkeeper and are watching somebody else’s season get better every week.
Transfer targets21 Jun 2027
A loan enquiry to Gazelle: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mahamat Oumar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market21 Jun 2027
The name of Marcel Ntcham keeps appearing in other people's back pages. US Moursal say nothing, which says plenty.
Market21 Jun 2027
The shop window has Saleh Abba in it
US Moursal have let the market know Saleh Abba can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
The dugout21 Jun 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at US Moursal, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Oumar Allamine is not doing himself any favours
A manager forgives a bad Saturday far more readily than a bad Tuesday, because one of them he can explain and the other one he chose. The reports this week have not been good.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match7 Jun 2027
Every point is an argument now for US Moursal
Position 11 and 20 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Market7 Jun 2027
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market7 Jun 2027
The bid was some way short and US Moursal did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market7 Jun 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at US Moursal is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Anthony Balogun and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Saleh Abba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Loan watch7 Jun 2027
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at US Moursal, and 2 appearances in 43 say he has earned the hearing.
Transfer targets7 Jun 2027
A loan enquiry to Gazelle: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Transfer targets7 Jun 2027
A loan move for Mahamat Ndoram is in the works
US Moursal have made the call to Gazelle. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout17 May 2027
Adam Souleymane: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” US Moursal have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad17 May 2027
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad17 May 2027
Saleh Mahamat and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout17 May 2027
A promise honoured at US Moursal
Something was said to a squad player and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
Market17 May 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Anthony Balogun signs something — a contract at US Moursal or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Loan watch17 May 2027
18 appearances at AS PSI and the goals keep coming. US Moursal are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
Market17 May 2027
US Moursal have let the market know Oumar Hissein can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
The dugout17 May 2027
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Squad17 May 2027
Questions about Oumar Allamine on the training pitch
The standards have slipped, and in a building where everybody watches everybody it has not gone unremarked. This is how a player loses a place before he loses one.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match10 May 2027
US Moursal are in real trouble now
Position 11, 20 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
Market10 May 2027
“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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Market10 May 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at US Moursal is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad10 May 2027
Adam Souleymane and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Loan watch10 May 2027
“I did not go to Aiglons to sit and watch. I want to come back to US Moursal and fight for my place.” 2 appearances in 39 matches say the rest.
Squad10 May 2027
Ezechiel Abakar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout10 May 2027
Oumar Allamine knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at US Moursal, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market10 May 2027
Saleh Abba linked with a move away
The name of Saleh Abba keeps appearing in other people's back pages. US Moursal say nothing, which says plenty.
Market10 May 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Saleh Abba may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces3 May 2027
Supporters organise against the US Moursal board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Boardroom3 May 2027
Pressure builds in the US Moursal boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Market3 May 2027
“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.
Market3 May 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at US Moursal is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad3 May 2027
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad3 May 2027
Mahamat Oumar and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout3 May 2027
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Anthony Balogun is on it.
The dugout3 May 2027
Oumar Allamine knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at US Moursal, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Boardroom3 May 2027
$20.2K taken back off the US Moursal table
What was available in the summer has quietly gone. Upstairs nobody will call it a change of ambition; downstairs nobody will call it anything else.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market19 Apr 2027
Oumar Hissein 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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Squad19 Apr 2027
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 Moursal this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad19 Apr 2027
The medical room confirms 15 days on the sidelines for Oumar Mbaiguedem, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ezechiel Abakar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market19 Apr 2027
The name of Anthony Balogun keeps appearing in other people's back pages. US Moursal say nothing, which says plenty.
Loan watch19 Apr 2027
18 appearances away from home and 5 goals to show for them. Every one of them makes next summer's conversation a little more expensive.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match12 Apr 2027
20 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Market12 Apr 2027
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
Ali Doungous: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” US Moursal have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Market12 Apr 2027
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. a squad player will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around US Moursal the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Anthony Balogun 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.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Loan watch12 Apr 2027
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at US Moursal, and 2 appearances in 35 say he has earned the hearing.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
Oumar Abakar knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Oumar Abakar trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market12 Apr 2027
The Saleh Abba story refuses to die
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Saleh Abba signs something — a contract at US Moursal or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match20 Mar 2027
The wait goes on for US Moursal
16 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Market22 Mar 2027
“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.
Squad22 Mar 2027
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.
Match20 Mar 2027
Foullah Edifice left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Player ratings22 Mar 2027
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑2 defeat, delivered by Brahim Ngaradoumbe to a room that had heard them before.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Mahamat Oumar and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
“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.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match27 Feb 2027
No end in sight to US Moursal's wait for a win
13 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at US Moursal has to find a result from somewhere.
Market1 Mar 2027
“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.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Anthony Balogun and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match27 Feb 2027
0‑2 to AS Algoy, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
Saleh Abba gets it from the manager
“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.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Oumar Allamine slips down the pecking order
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Oumar Allamine is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Brahim Ngaradoumbe after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Player ratings1 Mar 2027
Successful dribbles: 15. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market22 Feb 2027
“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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Squad22 Feb 2027
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 Moursal this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad22 Feb 2027
A row about effort at US Moursal
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Saleh Abba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
“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.
Loan watch22 Feb 2027
8 clean sheets on loan for Moussa Djimet
19 appearances at Foullah Edifice and the goals have stopped going in. US Moursal lent out a goalkeeper and are watching somebody else’s season get better every week.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
Oumar Hissein knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at US Moursal, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market22 Feb 2027
The name of Anthony Balogun keeps appearing in other people's back pages. US Moursal say nothing, which says plenty.
Loan watch22 Feb 2027
17 appearances away from home and 5 goals to show for them. Every one of them makes next summer's conversation a little more expensive.
Market22 Feb 2027
The shop window has Saleh Abba in it
US Moursal have let the market know Saleh Abba can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match6 Feb 2027
The wait goes on for US Moursal
11 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Market8 Feb 2027
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market8 Feb 2027
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Transfer targets8 Feb 2027
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at AS Algoy is saying, and nobody at US Moursal is enjoying the guessing.
Market8 Feb 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at US Moursal is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad8 Feb 2027
20 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad8 Feb 2027
A row about effort at US Moursal
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Saleh Abba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at US Moursal pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Oumar Moustapha and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match16 Jan 2027
The wait goes on for US Moursal
8 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Market18 Jan 2027
The offer from Afrique Foot Elite for Anthony Balogun was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Market18 Jan 2027
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around US Moursal people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Market18 Jan 2027
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market18 Jan 2027
Add another name to the list: Foullah Edifice have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Oumar Allamine. The answer from US Moursal has not changed — yet.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
Everything agreed with AS Algoy, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Anthony Balogun 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.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
US Moursal asked and Gazelle said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Saleh Abba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market4 Jan 2027
“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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Market4 Jan 2027
The offer from AS DGSSIE for Oumar Allamine was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Squad4 Jan 2027
7 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Match2 Jan 2027
No end in sight to US Moursal's wait for a win
6 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at US Moursal has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Djibrine Allamine is a better footballer than he was
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 21 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Anthony Balogun and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Market4 Jan 2027
The phone has started ringing about Adam Souleymane again, and this time the name on the line is AS PSI. US Moursal are listening politely and promising nothing.
Match2 Jan 2027
4 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Match2 Jan 2027
1‑2 to Gazelle, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market28 Dec 2026
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match26 Dec 2026
No end in sight to US Moursal's wait for a win
5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at US Moursal has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad28 Dec 2026
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 Moursal this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match26 Dec 2026
1‑3 to Elect Sport, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad28 Dec 2026
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
Saleh Abba gets it from the manager
“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.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 1‑3 defeat, delivered by Brahim Ngaradoumbe to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
Marcel Ntcham knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at US Moursal, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Loan watch28 Dec 2026
Moussa Djimet’s loan is measured in nothing happening
7 clean sheets from 12 appearances at Foullah Edifice. That is the whole of a goalkeeper’s job done properly, and it is being done a long way from the club that owns him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad14 Dec 2026
Narcisse Doungous damages knee ligaments — 15 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 15 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Market14 Dec 2026
“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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Saleh Abba 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 Moursal this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match12 Dec 2026
1‑2 to Aiglons, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Brahim Ngaradoumbe after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Squad14 Dec 2026
A row about effort at US Moursal
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and a squad player was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Oumar Allamine knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at US Moursal, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Off the academy pitches and into a senior shirt, at 17. The parents in the stand will keep the programme, and so will he.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad7 Dec 2026
Narcisse Doungous damages knee ligaments — 22 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 22 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Market7 Dec 2026
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Hassan Allamine and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Saleh Abba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Player ratings7 Dec 2026
Successful dribbles: 17. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad7 Dec 2026
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Adam Souleymane is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
Anthony Balogun has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at US Moursal will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Brahim Ngaradoumbe after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
Oumar Allamine knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Oumar Allamine trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market23 Nov 2026
Saleh Abba 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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Anthony Balogun 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.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
Ali Doungous gets it from the manager
“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.
Loan watch23 Nov 2026
“I did not go to Aiglons to sit and watch. I want to come back to US Moursal and fight for my place.” 2 appearances in 15 matches say the rest.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ezechiel Abakar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market23 Nov 2026
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. US Moursal know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Market23 Nov 2026
US Moursal have made Oumar Allamine available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
Loan watch23 Nov 2026
4 clean sheets on loan for Moussa Djimet
7 appearances at Foullah Edifice and the goals have stopped going in. US Moursal lent out a goalkeeper and are watching somebody else’s season get better every week.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
Moussa Oumar knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Moussa Oumar trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad9 Nov 2026
2 kept out from twelve yards, and a stadium that will describe each of them for twenty years. A goalkeeper needs one night like this in a career, and this was it.
Match4 Nov 2026
The small margins put US Moursal out
Out, 0‑0 to Elect Sport, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.
Squad9 Nov 2026
At 20 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.
Market9 Nov 2026
Mahamat Oumar 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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Anthony Balogun and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Saleh Abba falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match7 Nov 2026
Three points for US Moursal, 1‑0 the final word against AS DGSSIE in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
Twelve yards, a goalkeeper guessing, and it still did not go in. He will take the next one, and every soul in the ground will hold their breath.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
Marked 7.80 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, US Moursal had the best player on the pitch.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad26 Oct 2026
There were 9 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Market26 Oct 2026
“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.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Saleh Abba is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
The manager makes an example of Oumar Hissein
“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.
Loan watch26 Oct 2026
“I did not go to AS DGSSIE to sit and watch. I want to come back to US Moursal and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
Match24 Oct 2026
It finished 1‑1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
Player ratings26 Oct 2026
Successful dribbles: 14. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Brahim Ngaradoumbe was not hiding it after 1‑1, and nobody in the US Moursal dressing room was either.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Off the academy pitches and into a senior shirt, at 20. The parents in the stand will keep the programme, and so will he.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market28 Sep 2026
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad28 Sep 2026
Real improvement from a squad player at US Moursal
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. a squad player is 20, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
Squad28 Sep 2026
Anthony Balogun 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.
Squad28 Sep 2026
At 25 the improving is meant to be over, and it is not: 3 points better than a year ago. It happens to the ones who take the boring parts seriously.
Squad28 Sep 2026
A row about effort at US Moursal
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Saleh Abba was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Loan watch28 Sep 2026
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at US Moursal, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market21 Sep 2026
“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 Moursal, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 16 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Anthony Balogun and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad21 Sep 2026
At 26 the improving is meant to be over, and it is not: 3 points better than a year ago. It happens to the ones who take the boring parts seriously.
Loan watch21 Sep 2026
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at US Moursal, and 0 appearances in 6 say he has earned the hearing.
Squad21 Sep 2026
A row about effort at US Moursal
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ezechiel Abakar was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market10 Aug 2026
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market10 Aug 2026
“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 Moursal can pretend not to have heard.
Market10 Aug 2026
Add another name to the list: Galactik have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Oumar Hissein. The answer from US Moursal has not changed — yet.
Squad10 Aug 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Anthony Balogun commits to US Moursal for another 3 years.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Anthony Balogun 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.
Squad10 Aug 2026
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market3 Aug 2026
“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.
Squad3 Aug 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Oumar Allamine and US Moursal agree another 2 years.
Squad3 Aug 2026
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 Moursal this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad3 Aug 2026
Words at US Moursal training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Sofiane El Haddadi is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market3 Aug 2026
The phone has started ringing about Issa Abakar again, and this time the name on the line is Aiglons. US Moursal are listening politely and promising nothing.
Transfer targets3 Aug 2026
A loan enquiry to Stars Jeunes Talents: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
The dugout3 Aug 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Anthony Balogun trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market3 Aug 2026
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Oumar Moustapha has his answer from US Moursal; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Squad3 Aug 2026
“I will know when it is time. I am not there yet.” Oumar Allamine is 34, with 0 appearances behind him, and US Moursal will have to plan for whichever answer comes.