Kanoute named in Mali squad
Reports earlier in the year indicated the player would be handed a call by Mali coach Henri Stambouli, but Kanoute immediately dismissed the suggestions as nonsense.
However Kanoute, who has represented France at Under-21 level, has been named in a provisional 32-man squad by Stambouli.
The list will be trimmed by 10 before the tournament starts in Tunisia next month and it remains to be seen if Spurs striker Kanoute can be persuaded to play in the competition.
If Kanoute decides to play, it will come as a blow to Spurs chief David Pleat as it would mean his striker missing around a month of the Premiership season.
Squad: Cheick Oumar Bathily (Djoliba), Soumbeyla Diakite (Stade Malien), Mahamadou Sidibe (Aegalo, Greece), Fousseiny Tangara (Mantes 78, France); Ibrahima Abba Kone (Jeanne d'Arc, Senegal) Adama Coulibaly (Lens, France), Souleymane Diamoutene (Perugia, Italy), Boubacar Diarra (Freiburg, Germany), Fousseiny Diawara (Laval, France), Vincent Doukantie, Cedric Kante (Strasbourg, France), Ibrahim Thiam (Istres, France), Mamary Traore (Grenoble, France), Sammy Traore (Nice, France); David Coulibaly (Chateauroux, France), Soumaila Coulibaly (Freiburg, Germany), Alou Diarra (Bastia, France), Mahamadou Diarra (Lyon, France), Seydou Keita (Lens, France), Djibril Sidibe (Chateauroux, France), Mohamed Lamine Sissoko (Valencia, Spain), Bassala Toure (Athinaikos, Greece), Alassane Toure (FC Schaffhausen, Switzerland); Sedonoude Janvier Abouta (Djoliba), Mamadou Bagayoko (Ajaccio, France), Dramane Coulibaly (Laval), Abdoulaye Demba (Eendracht Aalst, Belgium), Moussa Diabate (Mulhouse, France), Mahamadou Dissa (Brest, France), Frederic Kanoute (Tottenham Hotspur, England), Mamadi Sidibe (Gillingham, England), Dramane Traore (Ismaili, Egypt).
