Maata Magassa (ZED, Egypt) and Papa Ndiaga Yade (LNJ Cherkasy, Ukraine) are on the Mauritania squad published on 6 November by the Mauritanian Football Federation for the two AFCON 2027 qualifying matches against Burkina Faso, on 13 and 17 November.
The Mauritanian Football Federation published on 6 November the official list of players selected for the double header against Burkina Faso in the AFCON 2027 qualifiers. Among the names are Maata Magassa, who plays for ZED, and Papa Ndiaga Yade, a player at LNJ Cherkasy in the Ukrainian Premier League. Both men have been called up for these two matches.
The schedule is set: Burkina Faso – Mauritania will be played in Ouagadougou on Friday 13 November, with the return match in Nouakchott on Tuesday 17 November. Mauritania began its preparation camp in Casablanca, Morocco, with a first training session on Monday evening, according to Elilam.
Magassa leaves ZED in the middle of the Egyptian Cup
Maata Magassa left the Egyptian club ZED in November to join up with the Mauritania squad. According to Egyptian outlet Youm7, he therefore missed his team’s match against Minyat Samannoud in the round of 32 of the Egyptian Cup.
The absence did not stop ZED from winning 5-0 and qualifying for the round of 16. Magassa, for his part, is on the official list published by the Mauritanian Football Federation on 6 November, according to Sport News Africa.
Yade, Cherkasy’s leader and already among the goals
Papa Ndiaga Yade has also been called up by Mauritania for these two matches. A leader at LNJ Cherkasy in the Ukrainian Premier League, according to Sport.ua and Ukrinform, he joined the club at the start of the season.
He has 4 goals in the Ukrainian league, according to Sport.ua. His presence in the Mauritanian squad comes in addition to that of Magassa, who plays in the Egyptian league.
A camp in Casablanca before the trip to Ouagadougou
To prepare for these fixtures, Mauritania has set up camp in Casablanca. According to Elilam, the delegation held its first session on Monday evening, before departure for Burkina Faso.
The programme is now set: the match in Ouagadougou will take place on 13 November 2026, and the return match in Nouakchott on 17 November 2026. These two matches are decisive for qualification to AFCON 2027, for which Mauritania start with an away game.