Exclusive: Behind the success of Senegalese Football - TD Mayacine Mar

Senegal currently hold the AFCON and CHAN titles. They are Beach Soccer and U20 men's champions, and they have qualified for the U17 AFCON finals against Morocco. Speaking to SABC Sport, Mar says they are reaping the rewards of Senghor's 13-year effort.

"The FA invests a lot of funds because the government is in charge of the national team. But for all the other national teams, all the projects, all the competitions projects, this is taken care of by the football association. We have to also praise the vision of a good president. A president who understands what development is and who's able to also listen to the TD [Technical Director],"

Senghor is also the CAF First Vice-President serving under President Patrice Motsepe.

Mae has been the TD for 11 years and outlines the vision that has taken them to where they are currently.

"So, I've had this position for about 11 years and with each term with the football association we have a development plan over four years where we define priorities. During the first term, from 2013 to 2017 the priority was to qualify for all international competitions, so the senior AFCON, u20 AFCON, u17 AFCON because formerly in 2013 we didn't qualify," he added.

Senegal have produced players in prominent European competitions over the years due to a solid academic system. Mae believes that academies like Generation Foot, which produced Sadio Mane and Ismaila Sarr, and Diambars Academy have made significant contributions to national team infrastructure.

"I believe that the level 1 training that we have does good training for young players in our academies because they have the right infrastructure. They also have the skills, they have good coaches that are able to train the players well. They always produced very good players but thanks to the standard that we put in place. It's not just them, there are also clubs that produce good players."