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Swindon Town midfielder Saidou Khan says it means “everything” to be called up to the Gambia squad for the first time, for their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n The 27-year-old was named in the Scorpions’ squad for their game against South Sudan on 14 June.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Khan had never played at a level above the National League before joining the Robins last summer. <\/span><\/p>\n He made 35 appearances for the League Two club this season. <\/span><\/p>\n “It means everything,” Khan told BBC Radio Wiltshire. <\/span><\/p>\n “Growing up in Gambia the national team, I think back then, was everyone’s way out. All you think is I want to do well so I can play for the junior national team and do well for them and get scouted and go to Europe. <\/span><\/p>\n “It was everyone’s main dream to play for the national team.” <\/span><\/p>\n A scout from the Gambian team came to watch Khan play, although he did not believe it would lead to a call-up to the squad.<\/span><\/p>\n “The coach then called me [but] even then I thought there’s a lot of Gambian players abroad so it might not happen. <\/span><\/p>\n “Later on, just a couple of days after the end of the season, I went to go and do some fitness with my friends and after the session I’ve gone on WhatsApp and seen I was in the Gambia national team group chat. I thought ‘wow’.”<\/span><\/p>\n Khan began his career in the lower leagues of the English football pyramid, eventually joining Dagenham & Redbridge and then Chesterfield in the National League in 2021. <\/span><\/p>\n He eventually made the step up to the English Football League when he joined Swindon, aged 26, and said he had a “point to prove” to himself that he could play at that level – having progressed later than his contemporaries.<\/span><\/p>\n “It was a massive step for me and I enjoyed every bit of it,” Khan said of last season. <\/span><\/p>\n Gambia sit third in Group G of their AFCON qualification group with two games remaining. <\/span><\/p>\n “I thought the best opportunity I can give myself to play for them is to do as well as I can in England, and if I do I’ll play for them it’s a dream, it’s amazing, I can’t believe it,” he added.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n