Name: Abdoulaye Sylla
Nickname: "Bernard"
Country:
GuineaClub: Hafia F.C.
Position: *GK
Side: RF/BS
Age: 25-31 years (??/??/1947)
Height: 180 cm *
Weight: 72 kg *
Attack: 30
Defence: 85
Balance: 83
Stamina: 63
Top Speed: 67
Acceleration: 70
Response: 90
Agility: 77
Dribble Accuracy: 50
Dribble Speed: 52
Short Pass Accuracy: 52
Short Pass Speed: 55
Long Pass Accuracy: 55
Long Pass Speed: 57
Shot Accuracy: 43
Shot Power: 79
Shot Technique: 43
Free Kick Accuracy: 43
Curling: 45
Header: 48
Jump: 84
Technique: 52
Aggression: 61
Mentality: 82
Goalkeeper Skills: 88
Team Work: 72
Injury Tolerance: B
Condition: 4
Weak Foot Accuracy: 4
Weak Foot Frequency: 4
Consistency: 6
Growth type: Standard
CARDS:
S11 - Penalty Saver
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Penalty Stopper
Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Defence Minded
INFO:
Sylla was a goalkeeper. He spent his entire career at Hafia FC in the 1960s and 1970s where he became the first goalkeeper to be crowned triple continental champion by winning the Africa Cup of Champions Clubs in 1972, 1975 and 1977. He was Guinea's starting goalkeeper from 1972 to 1978. The number of his caps isn't certain as his name is often confused with his successor Abdoulaye Keïta. Sylla is one of the few goalkeepers to leave a mark in three Africa Cup of Nations finals.
One of the best Africa goalkeepers of the 1970s, some considered him better than the Tunisian Attouga, the Nigerian Okala, the Zairian Kazadi, the Congolese Matsima, and the Malian Mamadou Keïta. It's also believed that the press would have talked about him for years, had he been French, Cameroonian or Senegalese.
Following Sylla's passing in 2021, journalist Oumar Dieng described him as a player with the right reflexes and all the qualities of a good goalkeeper. He always adapted to any match and succeeded to do as much as the defenders, putting himself at the same level of the rest of the team. What's more, Sylla had great spirit of sacrifice as he would represent his country even when he was injured, playing through the pain. Sylla was also a specialist in stopping penalties. Two of his most memorable penalty saves came in 1976 against the Algerians of MC Alger, and in 1977 against the Ghanaian team Hearts of Oak. In both occasions, the match was a African Cup of Champions Clubs final.