Seydou Keita, Daniel Cousin speak ahead of Mali-Gabon match

It will be a tale of three warhorses on Sunday when Gabon take on Mali in the quarter final of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Reuters/Thomas Mukoya

Mali have been helped on their road to the last eight by their special Ks - Cedric Kanté and Seydou Keita.

"With Cedric we're the two veterans in the side, the rest are youngsters," says Keita, who, like Kanté, is 32.

Keita, who is competing in his fifth Nations Cup, has won a sackful of trophies with Barcelona and the French outfit Lens to become the most decorated footballer in Malian history.

It’s a logical progression for him to become the mentor to the youngsters in the squad. “There’s a good spirit among them,” Keita acknowledges. “It’s good to be part of that and just like when I started in the team, there’s respect.”

And rightly so. Most of the youngsters in the Mali squad would be grappling to get autographs from the likes of Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez and Lionel Messi, Keita gets the ball from them in matches.

But, despite operating on a daily basis with the undisputed gods of the game, Keita says he accepts the need to transmit humility and responsibility.

“It’s up to me now to show a good example, that’s really important for the group. If the youngsters see me fighting for every ball and going back to defend, it’s easier for them to follow that lead.

“It’s an important role for me. It wasn’t the case in Angola or Ghana because there were other players the team looked to, even if I was one of them. This time there’s more of an onus on me.”

Keita and Kanté returned to international duty following a call from the Mali coach Alain Giresse. The 59-year-old former France international admitted bringing the duo back into the squad was a gamble.

But the man whose international pomp was in France ’s “carré magique” with Michel Platini, Jean Tigana and Luis Fernandez, says Kanté and Keita have proved their worth.

“They have a role which represents their experience. The team needs experienced players,” Giresse comments.

And the epitome of Giresse’s vision came when Keita struck the winning goal against Botswana 16 minutes from time.

In fact, the Barcelona midfielder has a knack of knocking in important goals. Two years ago in the opening match of the 2010 competition, he struck in the 79th minute when Mali were trailing Angola 4-0. It appeared to be merely a consolation. But it sparked one of the most extraordinary comebacks in Nations Cup history as Angola crumbled and Keita got the equaliser with virtually the last kick of the match.

“When it comes to playing for your club or your country, there’s no contest,” says Keita. “Your country is something else, I never felt like that with Barcelona, Sevilla or Lens. It's not comparable.”

Mali are looking to emulate the feats of 2004 when they reached the semi-finals in Tunisia.

“I'm not going to say that we had everything to lose in returning, conceded Kanté. “We came back to the squad in order to bring something to it, to help the young players and to help the country but it has to result in something concrete. We've invested in this and we would have been frustrated if we'd gone out in the first round.”

Both Keita and Kanté know enough about the peaks and troughs of the game to see the pitfalls of the clash against Gabon. 

"They are playing in front of their fans," says Keita. "They'll have pressure but they’ll also have the motivation, with their supporters behind them."

The Gabon coach, Gernot Rohr, believes those raucous fans in the Stade de L’Amitié Sino-Gabonaise will be the difference between the teams.

“I’m so happy that we topped our group so that we could play in Libreville ,” he says. “You saw the stadium and atmosphere in the games against Morocco and Niger . There were more than 40,000 people who were there to support the team. It was really a 12th man.”

The 58-year-old German will be hunting victory for a couple of reasons. By leading Gabon to victory he’ll become the country’s most successful coach. And he’ll also want to have bragging rights over his old midfield mucker Giresse. The pair played together in the mid-1980s in the Bordeaux championship and cup winning sides.

While Mali have the input of Kanté and Keita, over in the Gabonese camp, Daniel Cousin has become the talisman. He possesses nothing as extensive as Keita’s medal cabinet but he appears to have a similar galvanising effect on his team mates.

With his side trailing 1-0 to Morocco in the second Group C game, Cousin came off the bench in the second half.

His blustering style helped sew confusion in the opposition defence and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang levelled. Cousin got the second to give his side a 2-1 lead. Despite being pegged back to 2-2, Cousin was bustling around in stoppage time as Gabon grabbed the winner.

Named skipper for the final Group C game against Tunisia , it was Cousin’s through ball that set up Aubameyang for the winner.

“If I am a substitute, I am a substitute,” says Cousin sternly. “If I go onto the pitch, no problem. I give the maximum for the team. I am professional. I am the player with experience. I must show that professionalism to the youngsters.”

Cousin, who’ll be 35 on Tuesday, has played in France , Scotland , England and Cyprus during a 16-year career. He’s now back in Gabon turning out for the first division side FC Sapins.

In football parlance he’s a journeyman but in Gabon he’s content to quip that there’s another phrase for his odyssey.

“I am the big brother of the team.”

The former Hull City and Rangers striker adds: “It is the coach who wants this role for me. I have experience and I must do a good job.”

And he’s not done too badly so far, leading the team to their most important match.

“We are happy because we’ve got to the quarter-finals,” he declares. “I am proud as captain because the team has made everybody happy but we have to concentrate because the objective is to win the cup with Gabon .”

Amid the intensity of the clash on Sunday night, there’ll be a fascinating vignette on leadership. Gabon ’s sturdy skipper against the rock-steady beats of the specials Keita and Kanté.

It will be 90 minutes, possibly extra time, maybe even a penalty shootout. There will be dejection and elation.

More than 40,000 fans in the Libreville arena will be jumping for joy if it’s their Cousin who comes out looking special.