Mamady Sidibé (born 18 December 1979) is a Malian former professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who played as a
forward.
Sidibé moved from his native Mali to France when he was two years old. After playing football for a number of lower French league sides he joined
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...
in 2001. He spent a single season at the Welsh club before signing for
Gillingham. After three and a half years in
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
Sidibé rejected an offer of a new contract and joined
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system.
Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...
in July 2005 on a free transfer.
He went on to become a key member of
Tony Pulis
Anthony Richard Pulis (; born 16 January 1958) is a Welsh former professional football manager and former footballer who last managed Sheffield Wednesday.
Pulis obtained his FA coaching badge at age 19, followed by his UEFA 'A' licence aged 2 ...
's first team and helped the club gain promotion to the
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
in 2008. His career at Stoke was disrupted from 2010 by a serious
Achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...
injury, which recurred after his return and was then compounded by a knee dislocation, in total keeping him out of first-team football for more than two years. After his return, Sidibé spent time out on loan at
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system.
Formed in 1867 as an off ...
and
Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system.
Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...
before his contract at Stoke ended in May 2013. He then briefly joined Bulgarian side
CSKA Sofia
CSKA Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sports Club of the Army'' ...
, before retiring from professional football in 2015.
Club career
Early life in France
Sidibé was born in
Kremis,
Kayes Region
Kayes Region ( Bambara: ߞߊߦߌ ߘߌߣߋߖߊ tr. Kayi Dineja, ) is one of ten first level national subdivisions in Mali called Regions. It is the first administrative area of Mali and covers an area of . Its capital is the town of Kayes. The ...
in Mali before his family
migrated to France when he was two years old. He lived in
Pantin
Pantin () is a Communes of France, commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. In 2019 its population was estimated to be 59,846. Pantin is located on the edge of ...
before moving to
Bagneux, Hauts-de-Seine
Bagneux () is a commune in the Hauts-de-Seine department, in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.
Geography
The commune of Bagneux is surrounded by the following communes, from the north and clockwise ...
where he joined the local under thirteen football team. At the age of 15 he joined Massy Palaiseau, a youth team in the 91st district where he played for a whole season as a
defender. He impressed watching scouts and was signed by local team
Red Star 93 where he played along with
Fousseni Diawara
Fousseni Diawara (born 28 August 1980) is a professional football manager and former player who played as a right-back. Born in France, he played for the Mali national team between 2001 and 2015.
Club career
Starting his career in Parisien clu ...
,
Samba Diawara
Samba Diawara (born 15 March 1978) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender. Born in France, he played for the Mali national team. He is the manager of Ligue 1 club Reims.
Club career
Diawara started his career with Parisia ...
,
Diomansy Kamara
Diomansy Mehdi Moustapha Kamara (born 8 November 1980) is a former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Born in Paris, France, he played internationally for Senegal national footba ...
and
Abdoulaye Méïté
Abdoulaye Méïté (born 6 October 1980) is an Ivorian former professional footballer. He represented Ivory Coast internationally and was awarded a total of 48 caps.
Club career
Red Star 93
Méïté's first club at the age of 167 was the Di ...
. On the last day of the 1999–2000 season, the coach decided to play him as a striker and he scored his first goal of the season while playing what was his last game for Red Star. The following season, he joined
CA Paris-Charenton
Cercle Athlétique de Paris Charenton is a French football club which plays in the cities of Charenton-le-Pont and Maisons-Alfort, Val-de-Marne. The team is a merger between CA Paris (founded in 1892) and SO Charentonnais (founded in 1904). The ...
as a result of Red Star's financial demise which led to the club almost filing for bankruptcy. He left for the United Kingdom when he was 21 years old to join
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...
.
Swansea City
Sidibé was signed by
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...
on 25 August 2001 after a successful trial. He scored on his League debut for ''The Swans'' in a 3–1 win over
Macclesfield Town on the opening day of the 2001–02 season. He continued his impressive form and produced a man of the match display against
Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...
in the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
. This prompted interest from other clubs. He held talks with
Barnsley
Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...
over a £200,000 transfer in December.
However, he could not agree personal terms.
After picking up an ankle injury in December Sidibé returned to France however he failed to return on the agreed date and was disciplined by the club. He returned to the club in February 2002 and was offered a new contract which Sidibé rejected.
Gillingham
In August 2002 he joined
Gillingham, for whom he scored 13 goals in 115 matches. When Gillingham were
relegated
Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...
at the end of the
2004–05 season, Sidibé declined the offer of a new contract.
Stoke City
Sidibé joined
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system.
Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...
on a two-year contract on a free transfer in June 2005.
Tony Pulis
Anthony Richard Pulis (; born 16 January 1958) is a Welsh former professional football manager and former footballer who last managed Sheffield Wednesday.
Pulis obtained his FA coaching badge at age 19, followed by his UEFA 'A' licence aged 2 ...
, who brought Sidibé to Stoke, was sacked just four days later. He performed as a lone striker for the early stages of the 2005–06 season, keeping
Bruce Dyer
Bruce Antonio Dyer (born 13 April 1975) is an English former professional footballer.
His career started in 1993 with Watford, before he became the country's first £1 million-teenager when he joined Crystal Palace in 1994. He spent five ...
on the bench. Eventually, new Stoke manager
Johan Boskamp signed
Sambégou Bangoura to play alongside him in attack. He scored his first goal for City in a 3–1 win against
Norwich City
Norwich City Football Club is a professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was founded in 1902. Since 1935, Norwich have played their h ...
in August 2005. However, he did not score again for another 15 games.

He went on to make 47 appearances during the 2005–06 season scoring seven goals. Sidibé was more prolific during the 2006–07 season scoring nine goals as Stoke narrowly missed out on a play-off place.
Sidibé made 33 appearances for Stoke City in the 2007–08 season, scoring four goals including a vital brace against
Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England. The team compete in the , the second level of the English football league system.
Founded in 1894, the club competed in the Southern League and Western L ...
as Stoke were promoted to the
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
. On 23 August 2008, Sidibé scored the third goal in Stoke City's 3–2 home win against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
, when
Rory Delap's long throw was headed home by Sidibé. This was Stoke's first ever win in the
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
. Sidibé has since gone on to score his second Premier League goal of his career and season against
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...
in a 1–0 win against their fellow newly promoted rivals. On 6 December, Sidibé netted his third goal at
Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...
, to start the fightback from Stoke losing 2–0 to eventually draw 2–2, putting them 13th place in the league. On 12 December, Sidibé suffered a knee injury whilst playing for Stoke City against
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
at the
Britannia Stadium
The bet365 Stadium is an all-seater football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England and the home of EFL Championship club Stoke City. The stadium was previously called the Britannia Stadium but was renamed on 1 June 2016 when the cl ...
. The injury kept Sidibé out for two months but he injured the same knee again during the warm up for a reserve game against
Aston Villa Reserves. It was revealed that he needed surgery.
Sidibé made his return from injury coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2–2 draw with
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...
. The decision by the management to rush Sidibé back from injury has come under heavy criticism from supporters. Sidibé thought he scored in a 1–0 defeat at
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
however referee Lee Probert deemed it to be a foul on
Stephen Warnock
Stephen Warnock (born 12 December 1981) is an English former professional footballer who played as a left-back.
Starting off his career at Liverpool, he went on to also represent Coventry City, Bradford City, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa, Bo ...
. He made his 150th appearance for City against
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
on 6 January 2010 when he scored the third goal in a 3–2 win for Stoke. Sidibé signed a new contract at Stoke in February 2010, extending his stay at the Britannia Stadium until June 2012.
Sidibé snapped his
achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...
against
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...
which ruled him out the rest of 2010. He returned to first team training in January 2011. He marked his return to the side by scoring in a reserve game against
Burton Albion on 8 February. However two days later in a training session Sidibé again snapped his Achilles tendon ending his season. Sidibé admitted he broke down in tears when he snapped his right Achilles tendon for a second time in six months.
After 14 months out Sidibé made his comeback from his injury in a reserve match against
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football.
Founde ...
. However, in his next reserve match against
Port Vale Sidibé suffered more injury woe as he was carried off in the second half with a dislocated knee. After suffering his third serious injury in two years Sidibé admitted that he had considered retiring from football. On 22 November 2012 Sidibé joined
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system.
Formed in 1867 as an off ...
on a months loan. His loan spell at
Hillsborough was extended until 19 January 2013. He scored his first goal for the "Owls" in a 1–0 win away at
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...
. In February 2013 Sidibé joined
League One side
Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system.
Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...
on loan until the end of the 2012–13 season. His loan spell at
Prenton Park
Prenton Park is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Prenton, Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. It is the home ground of Tranmere Rovers F.C., Tranmere Rovers Football Club since opening in 1912, and formerly the home ground ...
was cut short due to an
abductor injury. He left Stoke at the end of the
2012–13 season after scoring 26 goals in 186 appearances for the club in an eight-year spell.
CSKA Sofia
On 29 July 2013 Sidibé joined
Scottish League One
The Scottish League One, known as William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill League One for sponsorship reasons, is the third tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional association football, foot ...
side
Rangers
A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to:
* Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...
on trial. He then joined Bulgarian side
CSKA Sofia
CSKA Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sports Club of the Army'' ...
on trial. On 28 August 2013, Sidibé signed a one-year contract with
CSKA Sofia
CSKA Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sports Club of the Army'' ...
. He made his league debut on 13 September, in a 1–0 away win against
Pirin Gotse Delchev, playing the full 90 minutes. Four days later, Sidibé scored his first goal in
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
, netting fifth in a 6–2 home win over
Haskovo
Haskovo ( ) is a city in the region of Northern Thrace in southern Bulgaria and the administrative centre of the Haskovo Province, not far from the borders with Greece and Turkey. According to Operative Program Regional Development of Bulgaria ...
in the
Bulgarian Cup
The Bulgarian Cup () is a Bulgarian annual football competition. It is the country's main cup competition and all officially registered Bulgarian football teams take part in it.
The tournament's format is ''single-elimination'', with all matche ...
. Sidibé had a difficult time settling in Bulgaria and was released from the club in December 2013.
Later career
Sidibe had a trial at
Southend United in October 2014. He retired from professional football in February 2015 due to family and business commitments, and began playing Sunday League football.
International career
Sidibé played at international level for
Mali
Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...
. He was first called up to the national team shortly after his debut for
Gillingham, featuring in two unofficial friendlies in the south of France against
Istres
Istres (; Occitan: Istre) is a commune in southern France, some 60 km (38 mi) northwest of Marseille. It is in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture.
Location
I ...
and
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, scoring against the latter.
His first official cap came in a qualifier for the
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...
against the
Seychelles
Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...
in 2002. He was part of Mali's squads for the
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
and
2008
2008 was designated as:
*International Year of Languages
*International Year of Planet Earth
*International Year of the Potato
*International Year of Sanitation
The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
African Cup of Nations, but made only one substitute appearance in each tournament.
In October 2007 he was
stabbed by a spectator during an international match with
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...
and suffered what was described as a "horrific injury".
Personal life
Sidibé has a younger brother, Lassana, who in 2009 signed for
Dover Athletic, who were managed by the elder Sidibé's former Gillingham teammate
Andy Hessenthaler
Andrew Hessenthaler (born 17 August 1965) is an English football manager and former player who is head of recruitment at club Gillingham. He began his career in non-league football and did not turn professional until he joined Watford at the ...
. In July 2009, Lassana played a pre-season
friendly for
Stoke's rivals Port Vale, in an attempt to follow Mamady into
the Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...
. However Lassana was not offered a contract and returned to Dover. His cousin
Moussa Sidibé is also a footballer. Sidibé's son
Sol was born in 2007 and signed a professional contract with Stoke in July 2023.
Despite growing up in Paris Sidibé supported their great rivals
Marseille
Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
. He released his autobiography in 2013 entitled ''The Luckiest Man in Football''. On 12 July 2014, Sidibe and his wife, Bineta, opened a
pâtisserie
A (), patisserie in French or pastry shop in English, is a type of bakery that specializes in pastries and sweets. In French language, French, the word ''pâtisserie'' also denotes a pastry as well as pastry-making.
While the making and selli ...
in the
Potteries Shopping Centre called Melice.
Career statistics
Club
International
Honours
Stoke City
*
Football League Championship
The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, i ...
runner-up:
2007–08
References
External links
*
*
Sidibe key to Stoke survivalBBC Sport Article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sidibe, Mamady
1979 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Kayes Region
Malian men's footballers
Malian expatriate men's footballers
Mali men's international footballers
French men's footballers
French sportspeople of Malian descent
Men's association football forwards
2004 African Cup of Nations players
2008 Africa Cup of Nations players
Malian expatriate sportspeople in Wales
Expatriate men's footballers in Wales
Expatriate men's footballers in England
Expatriate men's footballers in Bulgaria
Swansea City A.F.C. players
Gillingham F.C. players
Stoke City F.C. players
Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players
Tranmere Rovers F.C. players
PFC CSKA Sofia players
Premier League players
English Football League players
First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players
Malian expatriate sportspeople in England
Malian expatriate sportspeople in Bulgaria
French expatriate sportspeople in Wales
French expatriate sportspeople in England
French expatriate sportspeople in Bulgaria
French expatriate men's footballers
Footballers from Paris
Black French sportspeople