The Black Panther Party
or rebellion led Black Suddenly dribbling by Salif Keita.
These years smelled of gunpowder. The smell of battle between the dominated erecting their pride in the fatuity of the dominant. The atmosphere of struggle of the late '60s and early '70s opened the horizons of creativity, the affirmation of freedom and the reconstruction of lost honor. The black panther symbolizes the black struggle against oppression and exploitation of the capitalist American Wasp. On the other side of the Atlantic, the dreaded cat will also embodying in the green tunic pride, imagination and grace of black football at the end of the reign of the French colonial empire in Africa. Less explicitly in the register of political rebellion in the black ghettos in the U.S. empire, the genius with the ball and the intransigence with leaders, like statements and studies of the panther Salif Keita show failover political behavior made four decades ago. A sudden appearance of dignity which has slowly slipped to the shores of pragmatic business during the '80s. A political fortunes with the ball on the ground of our recent past.
Roots.
Born in Bamako, December 6, 1946, he made his first steps into the red earth and dusty streets in the neighborhood of Ouolofobougou. There he will learn not only to caress the leather, often with makeshift balls made of inner tubes tied, but the sense of dodging the bite the dust at opponents and look blossoms that the play of his mates. Premature talent, Salif Keita became, at 16, International in 1963 to the fledgling Republic of Mali, independent since 1960. This pin, in his first season the top level, the title of champion of Mali AS Real Bamako during the season 1964-65. Past Stadium in Bamako Mali, he led the club to the final of the first edition of the Africa Cup of clubs lost 2-1 to Cameroon Oryx Douala February 7, 1966. Even runs the following season, but this time after returning to AS Real Bamako. He scored 14 goals in eight games, which earned him the title of top scorer in the competition, however he fails to win against Stade Abidjan in the final (3-1 win in the first leg 4-1 loss return to Abidjan). With two cup finals in Africa and three league titles in three seasons of Mali, the fantastic striker of 20 years is marked by a supporter of the Greens Lebanese expatriate in Mali.
The revolution in the eye of the tiger.
This bear, Mr. Charles Dagher, multiplies the letters to the leaders of the Greens to extol the qualities of dribbling, speed, explosiveness and incredible creativity that collectively dubbed in his own country Domingo. Reeling from such insistence, President Rock and his right arm sports Garonnaire decide to bring Salif Keita in France for an internship. It defies the ban starting the Malian government and fled to Liberia where he was stripped of his money. He left his ticket to fly to Paris September 14, 1967. His arrival will become legendary. Because of bad weather, aircraft of the future Green can arise at Le Bourget, where the waiting Garonnaire, and landed at Orly Airport. Alone and penniless, Keita hails a taxi and asked him to take her seat at the club AS Saint-Etienne, assuring the driver that the leaders will pay the race (1000 francs, a tidy sum at the time) . The story goes around France, which likes the ball, the point of inspiring music and lyrics to J. Monty. "Taxi, Taxi, Taxi! I have an appointment at Geoffroy Guichard! " (1).
If the anecdote is told in the tone of the joke man, intelligence Salif Keita will not fail to detect the colonialist condescension of a country that still considers itself a kind of father for African too infantile to govern themselves. Who else but a kid, and ignorant of the realities of geography, may have the idea of taking a taxi to cross the half of France? In an interview ORTF in a calm and Keita will look proud to dot the i's on this. Explaining his decision to take a taxi was not reckless, but his only solution was even without money in a bureaucratic country where we can already negotiate the price of a train ticket. Noting that he knows French geography and is pursuing legal studies, he pushes the same argument to return to their own ignorance of the realities of "their" ancestors the Gauls by recalling that, apart from hexagon, it is not uncommon to take a taxi to travel thousands of miles. The infantilized gives a lesson in self-control and speech to his masters fallen on their national channel.
If Keita in 1970 may make such statements is that it has acquired the symbolic force. The weight of a player in his first season in the championship Green splashes his face engineering, explosive acceleration in dance steps dribblées of heel into goals. At that point the club adopts a black panther as its emblem in his honor in 1968. Game to play on opposing defenses with Rachid Mekhloufi and Hervé Revelli, the attacker becomes the new land of terror championship of France, St. Etienne leading consecutively to three additional championships (1968-69-70) and two cups of France (1968 and 1970) when his first three seasons in the Drill. And he will, with his accomplice Herve Revelli, an architect of the removal Cup champions Bayern Munich Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller and Sepp Maier inflicted through 3-0 in the second leg at Geoffroy Guichard 1 October 1969, after a defeat in the first leg 2-0. Sacred African Golden Ball in 1970, he wins the Silver Shoe Europe (2nd top scorer in club in Europe) with 42 goals in 38 games at the end of the 1970-71 season, after slamming three quadruplets and even a unique six-fold during the 8-0 Sedan cons in June 1971.
Proud to be black, proud to Be Human, proud to be free.
addition to his technical qualities individual hair-raising, is its collective sense, that love of the game embodied by decisive openings, the heel opening the way to his cronies and his dribbling swaying ending with the caviar that is available highlight his coach Albert Batteux. The coach and the Greens insisted on "the obvious collective concerns " of Mali and the remarkable and unexpected complicity with Hervé Revelli, a young prodigy tricolor against any spirit of individualistic competition. Solidarity on the lawn giving birth to a genuine mutual complicity punctuated offerings and allow the panther to register 131 goals in 182 games during five seasons he played at Saint-Etienne (2). How not to hear in this avalanche of feline goals, the achievements of some of the times, a resonance on the pitch to statements by Bobby Seale: "We do not fight racism with racism. We fight racism with solidarity. " (3)
But creativity and solidarity would have been able to express themselves without the freedom given to the attacker by Albert Batteux. Whoever invented the concept literally prohibition to prohibit the early '60s, leaving a blank check Kopa on the wing of his attack. - "If you stop dribbling, Raymond, I'll go out of the team!" intima Bebert Scientific cons believe the general view of the deterioration of team play by the excess exploits the attacker's Polish ancestry -. At first glance, the tactician mark in Keita that talent a little crazy as you want to lock channel. "A player like Keita is special. He is a player apart. With faults as a player so special like qualities. And the big problem for the adaptation of Keita in Saint-Etienne, has just been, I think, that we accept whatever he was able to reap the benefits of its qualities. " Liberated from all channels, Keita is a man, a man who defends his intelligence cons mockery, a man who creates a free man who knows how to share, far from his people reduced to mere puppets, a man in the fullest sense.
And a man who knows how to enforce. In 1972, underpaid by ASSE, he demands a decent wage. This is part of the changing status of professional footballers, particularly following the establishment of the union UNFP by Eugene N'Jo Lea and Just Fontaine in 1961. And the protest movement will continue during the '60s, symbolized by the occupation of the FFF headquarters in May 1968 under the slogan "Football for football players." Fruit struggle, in 1969 created the time contract, which replaces the lifetime contract where the footballer had to say about his career and a position necessarily weak to negotiate his salary. Chairman Rock is also still unaccustomed to such wage demands and gets angry with his player. Remains of the diktat of Presidents on players from the proletariat and then paid the best part of equal means, and mostly much less, the FFF suspends the panther for six months.
Without concession and free of any contract, by Salif Keita and Saint-Etienne to the Mediterranean shores of OM. For his first game in the colors Olympians November 21, 1972, Salif defeats in scoring twice, his former team. Propelling his 76 meter above the fray he scored his second goal with a head smashée. Victorious, he did a victory lap of the velodrome, stopping to greet the president pointedly and ironically Rock. A proud man, a warrior. This gesture earned him another suspension of a few games on the grounds of insulting the public [sic]. "Rock had betrayed and exploited, he considered me a slave who was entitled to nothing and had to serve for life, I refused to accept this gesture and I was relieved " says the leopard without no media relays his statement to the time.
The lifeblood.
leaders of French football were decidedly difficult to grasp the new reality. After a year, for the sake of quota of foreign players in their recruiting millionaires earning celebs Foreign leaders Olympians want to force the attacker to the Eagles become naturalized French. Adamant refusal of the Malian striker, author of 11 goals in 13 caps, of betraying his roots in favor of the former settler. He fled France for Valencia CF, and sadly will never be recalled to the national team, a sign of decolonization surface and returned to the "right way" of French Africa in Mali by the coup of General Traore in 1968. A few months before the ultimatum of OM, the panther had taken the Eagles in the finals of CAN 1972. Limping after an injury, he can not let it slip that the title against the Congo - Brazzaville. The Mali wait another 22 years involvement in the finals of the competition African Queen.
Recruited by former goleador coach of Real Madrid and Valencia, Di Stefano, there are three seasons in the English Liga. But the change in leadership just before his arrival does not create a climate conducive. His mentor was sacked Argentine at the end of his first season. Che remains remote level of play and results of Barca Cruijff. If journalists are in love with Keita and nicknamed the Black Pearl, supporters call the Mestalla more ambiguous fiera maldita, the cursed beast. Salif still registered 34 goals in 78 games in three seasons. But the waltz coaches, friction with its partners and especially the restriction of his freedom of play led him to want to leave in the summer of 1976.
transferred to Sporting Lisbon, he found the green and the European Cup, but the stands are not stirred the same frenzy that his years Saint-Etienne. After three seasons, the Portuguese Cup in 1978 and 43 goals in 77 games, he went to finish his career in the United States in April 1979. He delighted fans of the New England Tea Men of Boston for two seasons. Besides football, he began to study again, this time management. His team moving to Florida [sic], he concludes football pass to finish his degree in five years of study at Suffolk University.
Back home in the mid-'80s, he was appointed by the Federal DTN Mali. He quickly abandoned the post when his proposals to develop the forces of the Malian football is not heard. Leaders more prone to rapid dramatic results do not see the point of setting up a training policy. Salif Keita opened a hotel and looks after its affairs and business, giving the opportunity to advise his former club Real Madrid. Until 1993 when he created a club and training center his name, CSK, which will come out, among other top players, his nephew, Seydou Keita and Mamadou Diarra.
Elected President of the Malian Football Federation in June 2005, his four-year term was not renewed last July 16. The lack of income for the national team he is charged, then he says working to develop training facilities and professionalism to ensure the long-term future of football in Mali. Rumors of fraud and corruption, as is common in power struggles in Africa, without knowing whether rightly or not, tarnish its public image. His years Stéphanoises remain undoubtedly the pinnacle of his career, years of asserting his dignity and mastery of his art. Since then, the panther had its claws blunted in favor of a pragmatism that has struggled to disentangle the intricacies of African power. Like the Black Power watered down to finish disintegrated in the real politics of Obama.
Gus
PS: This Sunday, September 27, the city of Cergy will christen its new municipal stadium Salif Keita name. Rare tribute to an African sports on the European continent, where this will, among other personalities from the world of football, the former president of the UNFP (64 to 69) Michel Hidalgo.
His clubs
1963 - 1964: Pioneers Ouolofobougou
1964 - 1965: Real Bamako
1965 - 1966: Stade Malian
1966 - 1967: Real Bamako
1967 - 1972: Saint Etienne (Fra)
1972 to 1973: Marseille (Fra)
1973 to 1976: Valencia (Esp)
1976 to 1979: Sporting Lisbon (Por)
1979 - 1981: New England (USA)
Notes:
(1) The song Taxi to Geoffroy Guichard Monty http://pagesperso-orange.fr/balmotrol/asse/ extracts / un_taxi_pour_geoffroy_guichard.htm
(2) Data on the number of goals and games for some seasons vary somewhat depending on the source consulted (Wiki, Fifa, clubs or sites of fans, press). For the period Etienne site http://www.anciensverts.com , which seems the most reliable, lists 150 games and 125 goals in D1, 22 games and 14 goals in Cup in France, and for 10 games 2 goals in European Cup.
(3) "What the Black Panther Party was in essence, to call for the alliance and the coalition to all people and all organizations that want to fight the power. It is the power which, by his pigs and hogs, stealing the people, the elite and greedy ruling class demagogue who stirred the cops over our heads, and directs them to maintain their holdings. "Bobby Seale, the lookout, t en. 1972.
Bebert science: "I saw him try something 'supernatural'
Resources:
- Salif Keita, the Black Panther football http://www.afrik.com/article6874.html
- A very complete bio http://www. africafoot.com/coupes/special_mali_2002/salif_domingo.html
- Another Cup (with errors) http://fr.fifa.com/classicfootball/players/player=214125/index.html
- Docu 15mn on Keita, September 14, 1970 Ina on http://www.dailymotion.com/search/Saint+Etienne/video/xakua7_salif-keita-1er-ballon-dor-africain_sport
- Interview by L'Humanite in 2002 http://www.humanite.fr/2002-02-09_Sports_-Les-Aiglons-de-Salif-Keita-Le-plus-renomme-des-footballeurs
- Declaration of occupation the headquarters of the FFF mai1968 http://juralibertaire.over-blog.com/article-18635587.html
- Elements historical and current immigration football: http://www.wearefootball .org / pdf / a-new-treaty "
- The Guinean director Cheick Doukouré was inspired by the life of Salif Keita for his film" Golden Ball "in 1994.
0 comments:
Post a Comment