Africa-Press – Senegal. The coach of the Senegal under-17 football team, Serigne Saliou Dia, assured on Saturday in Annaba (Algeria) that his staff had undertaken work to protect his proteges from negative effects of social media.
« There is no player who sleeps with his phone. We have taken everything so that they are not disturbed in this competition. They are young players, they are exposed to the harmful effects of social networks on their development. We took the lead, » he said at the pre-match press conference.
Senegal meets Burkina Faso on Sunday afternoon in a match counting for the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations under 17 (CAN U17) organized since April 29 in Algeria.
« Football is multidimensional, what happens off the pitch is also important and we prepare them for that », said the Senegalese technician.
According to Dia, Africans must « protect » those who are dear to them, that is to say their « players, their « diamonds in the rough » so that they can represent the continent elsewhere.
« The Europeans are realizing that Africa is coming up to their level, because the continent has players, raw talent. Africa has something to prevail, » he stressed, citing Burkinabe midfielder Aboubacar Camara and Algeria midfielder Moslem Anatouf.
« We are progressing on the intensity of the game, the understanding of the game. It was lacking for us and I think we are not far away. We have to focus on what we are doing and on this aspect, we are preparing our players,” said the winner of the 2015 African Games in Brazzaville.
He also mentioned the positive influence of Senegalese international Sadio Mané on the development of his players. « It is a reference for these young people. They are all fighting to be on the same level as Mané and to be where he is. This is another motivation for them, » he said.
Pour plus d’informations et d’analyses sur la Senegal, suivez Africa-Press
