By Zackline Colley
Coach Johnathan McKinstry has announced a 24-man squad as The Gambia prepares to continue their quest for a spot in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025, set to take place in Morocco.
The team will face tough qualifying matches against Tunisia and Comoros.
The squad features a mix of new talent and returning players. New faces include goalkeeper Lamin Saidy, a first-division player for Real de Banjul, and Momodou Njie, who plays professional football in Norway. Joseph Ceesay and Abdoulie Ceesay are also among the fresh additions. Additionally, the team will see the return of experienced players like Ali Sowe, Ebrima Darboe, Ibou Touray, Hamza Barry, and James Gomez, who were absent in previous games due to various reasons.
McKinstry expressed his satisfaction with the current state of Gambian football, noting that the increasing number of players performing well at club level has made it more challenging to select the national squad. “One of the nice things for Gambian football at the moment is it’s becoming progressively more difficult to name the squad, because we’ve got a lot of guys out there playing at a good level of the game,” McKinstry said during the squad announcement.
He acknowledged the disappointment of some players who were not included in the squad, citing the intense competition for places. “If you’ve got competition for your place, you know you’ve got to be playing well week in, week out, otherwise you’re going to be out.”
Reflecting on the team’s recent performance, particularly in the June qualifiers, McKinstry highlighted the frustration of not converting dominance in play into more goals, especially in the match against Gabon. “Our biggest frustration in the Gabon game especially was that we weren’t able to convert that dominance in play into more goals,” he stated.
McKinstry emphasized that the team’s strategy remains focused on aggressive and positive football. He assured fans that the squad’s quality would be higher this time, with the return of key players who were previously sidelined. “We want to go out, we want to attack, and we want to do that for as often as we can at as high-quality level as we can in the games.”
As The Gambia gears up for the crucial qualifiers, McKinstry’s squad is set to bring both experience and fresh energy to the pitch, with the ultimate goal of securing a place in AFCON 2025.
