Head coach of Mali’s National Men’s Football Team, Tom Saintfiet, has confirmed that he held talks with the Ghana Football Association (GFA) over potentially taking over as the Black Stars head coach.
He confessed this in his pre-game presser ahead of Mali’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Ghana at the Accra Sports Stadium on Monday, September 9 at 19:00 GMT.
Saintfiet excelled at the 2021 AFCON with Gambia as he led the West African nation to a first ever quarterfinals appearance at the continental championship.
His exploits with the team caught the attention of many suitors including Ghana but Saintfiet missed out on coaching the Black Stars as former Brighton and Hove Albion manager Chris Hughton was handed the assignment.
“It’s true that at that moment, after AFCON, around AFCON, there were talks…but I had a feeling I was close to the Black Stars job. I spoke about four hours I think in total with the Ghana Federation with kurt [Okraku] and Mark [Addo, the President and Vice President…but in the end they decided [to go] for another coach” he reflected while addressing the press.
Saintfiet was appointed as Mali head coach on August 28 to replace Eric Chelle and bagged four wins and two draws to qualify Mali to the 2025 AFCON.
In three 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers under Saintfiet, Mali have two wins and a draw ahead of its matchup against Ghana.
