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Liberia: Balde, Johnson Return to Lone Star Squad

todayOctober 4, 2024 2

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Monrovia — Liberia’s national football team coach, Mario Marinica, has announced a 24-man squad for the upcoming back-to-back 2025 CAF AFCON Qualifiers against Equatorial Guinea this October.

The Lone Star will face Equatorial Guinea away on October 11 for the first leg before returning home for the second leg, which will take place in Monrovia on October 14.

The squad list, released by the Liberia Football Association via their official Facebook page on Thursday, October 3, includes a mix of ten professional players, two unattached players, two African-based players outside Liberia, one North American-based player, one Asian-based player, five home-based players, and eleven Europe-based players.

One of the notable names in the squad is Prince Balde, who currently plays in Sweden. Balde was a key member under previous coaches Peter Butler and Ansu Keita but has yet to make an appearance since Marinica took over the national team. The former Global Pharma FC defender last played for Liberia in March 2023 during a 2-1 home defeat to South Africa in an AFCON qualifier. His consistent performances for FC Rosengård in the Swedish Division One have earned him a recall to the national squad.

For the first time under Marinica, right-back Joel Johnson, who plays in the United States for Charlotte Independence, has been called up. Johnson’s last appearance for Liberia was against Equatorial Guinea in November 2023.

Unattached midfielder Armah Vaikainah, who has only made two club appearances (a total of 88 minutes) in 2024, is also included in the squad, while active players like William Jebor, Justin Salmon, and Brem Soumaoro have been omitted. Vaikainah has been a free agent since July after his contract with Maltese Premier League club Marsaxlokk expired, following a season where he made just nine appearances. His last match for Liberia was a brief five-minute appearance in the team’s 1-0 victory against São Tomé and Príncipe last month.

Here is the full squad:

Goalkeepers:

Tommy Songo

Abdulai Koulibaly

Derrick D. Julu

Defenders:

Sampson Dweh

Prince Balde

Kemoh Kamara