{"id":35640,"date":"2023-05-24T15:53:04","date_gmt":"2023-05-24T15:53:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/?p=35640"},"modified":"2023-05-24T15:29:19","modified_gmt":"2023-05-24T15:29:19","slug":"mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me","title":{"rendered":"MAMIN SANYANG: U-20 WOLRD CUP IS HUGE FOR ME"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. <\/strong><\/span>Bayern Munich starlet and Gambia Under-20 international Mamin Sanyang has been discussing with Fifa.com about his move from The Gambia as a child, his medical complications and how he wants to help his nation at the Fifa U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023.<\/b><\/p>\n

Though still only 20, Mamin Sanyang has already learned to live to the full. The versatile right-back, who can also play on the left and on the wing, has had to overcome a number of obstacles on and off the pitch to arrive at where he is today: preparing to represent The Gambia at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023TM.<\/p>\n

It was only five short years ago, however, that he thought he would be forced to give up the game he loves due to a brush with death.<\/p>\n

Born in Brikama, in the west of The Gambia, in February 2003, he is the eldest of seven (five girls and two boys) and lived a happy childhood, except for the occasions he was caught skipping school by his father and uncles, the result of his preference for kicking a ball around barefoot with his friends and warming his fingers up on a PlayStation.<\/p>\n

His life changed in 2013, however. With his mother having fallen ill, the family decided to move to Germany, where an uncle of his lives. Sanyang, who was only 10 at the time, took up the story. \u201cThe day before we left for Germany, I was outside playing with my friends,\u201d he told FIFA. \u201cThe next day I was gone. My parents said to me, \u2018We\u2019re going to Germany\u2019. I replied, \u2018What? Germany? In Europe?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanyang has yet to return to the country of his birth: \u201cI didn\u2019t have the chance to talk to my friends, so I wasn\u2019t able to say goodbye.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything was so hard when I arrived in Germany,\u201d said the player, who finds it easier to speak in German than English now. \u201cThe environment and culture were different. The food was different and the weather too. It snowed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once he had got over the shock of his sudden departure, Sanyang rediscovered his first love: football. Describing himself as a player known for his speed, dribbling, explosiveness and shooting, and who is similar to Sadio Mane, Vinicius Jr and Alphonso Davies, he played for FC Heidenheim before being spotted by Hoffenheim in 2018. Two years later, Bayern Munich signed him for their U-19s.<\/p>\n

Now a reserve-team player with the Bavarian giants, Sanyang has been able to fulfil one of his dreams. \u201cBayern have given me the chance to train with the first team,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve been able to see how the pros are, how they play and train. \u201cMane spoke to me and gave me some advice. Sadio is one of the best players in the world. He\u2019s modest and he\u2019s one of my heroes. \u201cIt was great to sit next to him and to talk to him in Mandinka, because he speaks my language. He explained a lot of things to me: how to be a professional, how to improve on the pitch. I was like a kid. It was like a dream.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet, Sanyang\u2019s path to the Bayern training ground and that chat with Mane was far from smooth. During his time at Hoffenheim, he fell ill and came down with migraines, just as he was about to move up to the U-16s.<\/p>\n

The club asked him to go home and rest. A week later he was back training, but quickly felt pains in his chest. Following an ECG, the doctors gave him the news. \u201cHerzmuskelentzu\u0308ndung,\u201d he said in German, meaning myocarditis or inflammation of the heart muscle.<\/p>\n

The disease, which can cause sudden death among elite athletes, led to Sanyang spending two weeks in intensive care and another two weeks recovering in hospital.<\/p>\n

The youngster was unaware of it all. \u201cIt was as if I slept right through and just woke up and left hospital the next day,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen he came out, I was told to rest \u2013 for a long time. The six or 12 months I sat doing nothing were really very tough for me because football carried on and everyone forgets you,\u201d recalled Sanyang, who was 15 at the time and had to learn to be patient. \u201cNobody cares if you\u2019re ill. When you\u2019re not playing, no-one gets to see your talent anymore.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately, I should be happy because some doctors said I might never play again. They said I was lucky because if I\u2019d left it a day, my heart could have gone. \u201cThanks to God, I\u2019m here today. I\u2019m going to play in the World Cup, so I\u2019m very happy I survived. It could have been worse. I could have lost everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is now back to full health, while his mother has also recovered from her ailment.<\/p>\n

Having had a brush with death, the Bayern man wants to make the most of everything life has to offer him.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaying at this World Cup is huge for me because not many players at my age have the chance to do that,\u201d said Sanyang, who also ran out for Germany at U-19 level before opting for his country of birth. \u201cI feel great and I\u2019m happy to be here. It\u2019s a great honour for me. The national association and the coach have put their faith in me, and I want to repay them and take the country forward,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Gambia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Gambia. Bayern Munich starlet and Gambia Under-20 international Mamin Sanyang has been discussing with Fifa.com about his move from The Gambia as a child, his medical complications and how he wants to help his nation at the Fifa U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023. Though still only 20, Mamin Sanyang has already learned to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":35638,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[2355,2361,260],"class_list":["post-35640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-gambia","tag-gambia"],"yoast_head":"\nMAMIN SANYANG: U-20 WOLRD CUP IS HUGE FOR ME - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Bayern Munich starlet and Gambia Under-20 international Mamin Sanyang has been discussing with Fifa.com about his mov ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MAMIN SANYANG: U-20 WOLRD CUP IS HUGE FOR ME\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Bayern Munich starlet and Gambia Under-20 international Mamin Sanyang has been discussing with Fifa.com about his mov ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gambia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-05-24T15:53:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2023\/05\/sm_1684925436.912953.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"MAMIN SANYANG: U-20 WOLRD CUP IS HUGE FOR ME\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-05-24T15:53:04+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me\"},\"wordCount\":939,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/gambia\/sites\/19\/2023\/05\/sm_1684925436.912953.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Gambia\",\"Gambia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/mamin-sanyang-u-20-wolrd-cup-is-huge-for-me\",\"name\":\"MAMIN SANYANG: U-20 WOLRD CUP IS HUGE FOR ME - 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