AFC Totton
FORMER WEYMOUTH U23s midfield enforcer Will Keita has joined Jimmy Ball’s AFC Totton in time for the start of the 2024/25 season.
Mohamadou William Keita was born in Mali, West Africa. He came to the UK as a 16-year-old and was educated at the Bournemouth Collegiate School in Lower Parkstone, where he soon excelled in their Football Academy team, BCS United. There, he caught Weymouth’s eye and was invited to join The Terras’ youth set-up at the Bob Lucas Stadium, where he has played for the last two years.
Standing at 6’3” with an athletic physique, Keita usually plays as a defensive midfielder but is also comfortable at centre-back or right-back. He describes his on-pitch persona as aggressive – even “quite mean” – and claims to be an effective man-marker. Prompted to do so, he likens his style of play to the French international and former Leicester City and Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kanté when operating in midfield, and to the Portuguese veteran defender Pepe when playing at the back.
Now 19, Keita says the biggest change in his game during his spell at Weymouth has been a stark improvement in his on-field discipline:
“I used to have a short fuse and picked up way too many red and yellow cards,” he confesses. “I got sent-off four times in a single season, once. But thanks to some good coaching, I have learned to time my tackles better and to make better decisions that will make sure those situations don’t happen.”
Keita began this summer’s pre-season campaign in the Weymouth squad, coming off the bench to score in a 2-0 win at Sholing and also featuring in a goalless draw at Wimborne Town. He was in attendance for AFC Totton’s home friendly against Brockenhurst last Wednesday evening, when he posed for photographs and gave an interview to the Matchday Programme, but he didn’t feature in the game. A youthful Stags side produced an impressive display of attacking football to run-out 3-1 winners, with the first goal of the night coming from one of Keita’s friends in football.
“I know Remus Nixon because we used to play together at BCS United, and there are a couple of other young players currently on trial here that I played with at Weymouth.”
Like many young players at this level of the English non-league pyramid, Keita remains steadfast in his ambition to become a full-time professional footballer – and he’s not shy about clearly stating what he wants to get out of his time with AFC Totton.
“I want to come here, help Totton win promotion and get a professional club to take a serious interest in signing me. I want to play football at the highest level I possibly can. I wasn’t getting the minutes I needed at Weymouth, but I believe that coming here will give me the opportunity to show what I can do and start progressing in that direction.
“I’m quite impressed with the standard of the players here – I think the Totton first team is already better than a lot of sides in National League South – and Jimmy Ball’s reputation in the game, especially when it comes to working with young players, was a big factor in bringing me here.”
Keita’s new Manager Jimmy Ball (pictured above, right) commented on his new signing:
“Will is an aggressive defender with the strength and physique to match. We know he’s had some disciplinary issues while he’s been finding his feet as a younger player, but I’m confident that we can channel that and turn into the kind of determination and never-say-die attitude that helps you win football matches.
“It’s very pleasing to be able to attract an exciting prospect like him to the club at this stage, and it points to what we’re trying to do in terms of the introduction of an Under-23s team as a direct pathway into the first team. If we can get that right and get it working as it should, then we’ll massively lighten the burden on the transfer budget while generating a team that the people of Totton can be rightly proud of.
“Will now has a tremendous opportunity to come here and make a name for himself – whether that should be as a player who goes on to bigger and better things in professional football, or as one who remains with us for the long-haul, hopefully contributing to our own continued rise through the football pyramid. Whichever proves to be the case, it’s my pleasure to welcome him to the football club and I’m really looking forward to working with him.”
By Ben Rochey-Adams
Images courtesy of Sayers Sports Photography
