Thrust into goal by an injury to first-choice keeper Gautier Larsonneur, Senegalese goalkeeper Mamour Ndiaye kept a clean sheet on his first start for AS Saint-Étienne, 1-0 winners over Red Star in Ligue 2.
Stade Bauer was the setting for a first. Mamour Ndiaye, a 20-year-old Senegalese goalkeeper standing 1.90 m, played his first match as a starter in an AS Saint-Étienne shirt, reports But! Football Club. The Forez club came away with a 1-0 win over Red Star, secured by a Cardona goal, according to Evect.
On his first full start, the keeper conceded nothing. According to Peuple Vert, he kept out all 3 of the Audoniens’ shots on target and thereby recorded his very first clean sheet. A debut that extends a start to the adventure without a single goal conceded: he had already come on against Rodez (2-0 win), meaning two appearances, two wins, no goals conceded, as Poteaux Carrés notes.
Larsonneur’s injury sped everything up
Ndiaye was thrust into goal because of a knee injury to the usual starter, Gautier Larsonneur, hurt against Rodez, reports Peuple Vert. An injury that rules him out for several weeks, according to OneFootball. The young Senegalese therefore inherited the spot.
Head coach Ian Cathro praised the manner of it. “I think he delivered a calm and steady performance, he helped the team stay balanced. Everything happened quickly for Mamour Ndiaye. It was a different week for him. He quickly knew he was going to play his first match as a starter. He prepared quietly, in a very natural way.”
Behind him, defender and captain Julien Le Cardinal also highlighted the keeper’s composure, in comments relayed by OneFootball and Ici Saint-Étienne Loire: “We know he’s a big worker, we know his abilities. He showed it again tonight, I think he showed composure. I think the lads behind him felt it, and we saw it in their behaviour.”
From striker in Dakar to Sarpsborg
Born in Dakar, Mamour Ndiaye first played as a centre-forward in the neighbourhoods of the Senegalese capital before moving into goal, because of his height, during penalty shootouts, according to footballdatabase.eu. He came through the Oslo Football Académie in Dakar before signing in Norway, with Sarpsborg 08 FF, in 2024.
In the Norwegian league, he played 43 top-flight matches and reached the national cup final at just 19, according to the same source. He signed for the Verdets of ASSE this summer until June 2030.
Nantes up next, sold out
With Larsonneur out for several weeks, Ndiaye is set to keep his place in the Forez goal, according to OneFootball. The next fixture is on Saturday: ASSE host FC Nantes at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, sold out.
Ndiaye will start again in that match.