Last season, FC Orenburg surprised everyone by mounting a challenge for a European spot in their first season back in the Premier Liga. Led by the likes of Aleksey Sutormin, Djordje Despotovic, Denis Popovic and Ricardo Alves, the Gazprom-owned side finished just three points behind Arsenal Tula, the team that eventually got the Europa League spot. At the start of the new season though, the club had to let go of most of their star players, due to unknown issues. Sutormin, defender Silvije Begic, Popovic, and Andrey Kozlov left among others, leaving the squad heavily depleted.
The club then made some late signings in an attempt to salvage the transfer window and the upcoming season. Serbian defender Uros Radakovic and right-back Georgiy Zotov signed on loan deals, as did the Dinamo Moscow triplet of Moskvichev, Chernykh and Lipovoy. Andrey Klimovich, Filip Rogic, Joel Fameyeh and Ziga Skoflek, players that have been vital to the club this season were all brought in on permanent deals. Despite these new signings, Orenburg hasn’t had a season that is comparable to their near-fairytale last season. The club is currently in the relegation zone, sitting 13th after 22 games.
More signings were made in the winter to ensure survival, and one of those signings is Senegalese-Spanish striker Mamadou Sylla. The 26-year-old moved to Spain at a young age, and joined the FC Barcelona youth setup in 2009, before signing for the Blaugrana’s Catalan rivals, RCD Espanyol. The striker spent three years at the club’s B side, scoring 15 goals in 64 total appearances. After a season out on loan at Racing Santander, Sylla returned to Espanyol for the 2015/16 season and was a mainstay in the club’s squad for the La Liga season.
He then moved to Belgium to play for KAS Eupen, and was highly impressive, racking up 25 goal contributions in 39 appearances. This earned him a move to KAA Gent, one of the country’s biggest clubs. While on Gent’s books, Sylla was loaned out to Zulte Waregem, Sint-Truiden, and has now been leased by Russia’s very own Orenburg.
We contacted the striker for an interview and managed to get some very interesting answers about his career. We’d like to thank Orenburg’s press officer and Mamadou himself for agreeing to the arrangement and answering our questions. Here’s what the player had to say about…
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Signing for Orenburg and his experience at the club so far:
I joined the team on the 10th of January in Antalya (Turkey) during their training camp. It has been a positive experience so far. I am adapting as quickly as I can within the team. Everything changes when you go to a new club; the stadium is new, and so is the city. When the pandemic ends, we’ll try to end the season well, both personally and collectively.
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His goals as a footballer:
In the short term, when football returns I’d like to help the team in finishing the season well and improve my individual stats. I’m a player on loan here, and I’ll see what happens at the end of my loan deal. It’s difficult to think about what will happen in the long term, but my goal is play in the big European leagues, and for a great team. I know that to achieve that, I have to work very hard.
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On coming through the Barcelona youth system, and playing for Espanyol:
I came to Spain when I was ten years old with my parents and brothers. I started playing for the city team that was 25 kilometres from Barcelona, and joined FC Barcelona a couple of years after that. I was there until about the age of 17, and though I didn’t get to train with the professionals, I saw the likes of Messi, Eto’o and Ronaldinho around.
After leaving Barcelona, I joined another team, and then after six months there, Espanyol picked me up. I played three years in the lower categories and then was loaned out to Racing Santander in the second division. I only spent a few months there but the time was incredible.
On my return from that loan, Espanyol gave me a professional contract and I played in the first division for the 2015-16 season. It was a magnificent season on a personal level, playing 90 minutes on grounds like the Santiago Bernabeu against players like Sergio Ramos, Ronaldo and Gareth Bale was incredible.
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On football in Belgium, and how it is compared to that in Russia:
I played three and a half seasons in Belgium, and the two championships are very similar. There are a lot of transitions, recoveries, a lot of physicality, and even the weather is very cold compared to Spain. I like both leagues, and I don’t see any differences between them. The (Russian) league has better stadiums than Belgium though.
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On the diversity in the Orenburg team, and who he gets along with the most:
We have a lot of players from different countries, but there is a good vibe and we all get along with each other. I’m a bit of an introvert but I am close to guys like Joel (Fameyeh) and Edy (Gottlieb); the guys that speak English.
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On football in Senegal and the trajectory it is on:
Senegal has a good team, and we almost won the African Cup. You have to learn from the mistakes of the past, and we have very good players in our team, like Sadio Mane. I think we aren’t far from winning a major tournament. If we follow this path, and correct our mistakes, we’ll win the next Africa Cup of Nations.
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On his idols growing up:
I have always looked up to players like Samuel Eto’o and Didier Drogba, but my idol since childhood has been Thierry Henry, especially when he played for Arsenal.
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On his message to young footballers aiming to become professionals:
I have a little brother who plays in the lower categories at FC Barcelona, and I always tell him to enjoy the game and never stop striving. It requires good conduct, good discipline and a lot of sacrifices, and it isn’t easy. However with hard work, and self-belief, it is possible to get wherever you want.
The post Meet Mamadou Sylla: Orenburg’s New Senegalese Star appeared first on Russian Football News.