Tag: Senegal

Big win for schadenfreude as Qatar is first team eliminated at World Cup

Qatar has no way to get to the knockout round after today’s World Cup results

The World Cup isn’t over for Qatar, but as far as their obligations on the field, they’ll definitely only get one more game.

The hosts are the first team to be mathematically eliminated at the World Cup, with no path that leads them out of Group A. Friday’s 1-1 draw between the Netherlands and Ecuador leaves them with an impossible task.

Earlier on Friday, Qatar fell 3-1 to Senegal, meaning that they started the World Cup off with two losses. There’s only one scenario where a team can do that and go through, but it’s no longer a possibility for Qatar, the host nation that everyone likes and no one has huge reservations about.

The Netherlands and Ecuador both have four points, while Senegal is on three. Qatar, coming off of two losses, can’t do better than three, meaning the best they can do is third place.

Ecuador, the Netherlands, and Senegal will all be facing off for two spots in the knockout rounds in the final set of games in Group A, but for the hosts, the results of the final set of games are academic.

Has any host ever done this badly?

No!

Qatar is just the second host nation to ever go out at the group stage, joining South Africa in 2010. Home field advantage is very real at the World Cup: most host nations (18 of 22, to be exact) have managed to go as far as the quarterfinal round, much less simply get out of their group.

However, there’s some crucial context to add here. South Africa beat France, finished with four points, and were only eliminated on goal difference. The Bafana Bafana left the tournament with their heads held high. Qatar, meanwhile, is at risk of going out without a single point. That makes the argument that Qatar is the worst World Cup host ever, a point people have been making regardless of the final scores in this tournament.

Qatar being eliminated early won’t undo the horrors of the kafala system used to build the stadiums and other infrastructure, or the hostility towards LGBTQ+ fans, but it does at least mean we can all enjoy a bit of schadenfreude.

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Cody Gakpo seized his moment with Netherlands game-winner vs. Senegal

It looks like Gakpo is ready for the big time

Cody Gakpo wants to make sure he’s on any list of breakout young stars at this World Cup.

The PSV attacker scored what turned out to be the game-winner for the Netherlands in their 2-0 victory over Senegal, heading a chipped pass from Frenkie de Jong home in the 84th minute.

Things weren’t going as smoothly as Louis van Gaal had planned, with a potent Senegal team creating their fair share of chances (and in fact, out-shooting the Dutch 15-10 on the night). A draw wouldn’t have been a disaster, but it would have made things far more stressful in their next match against group-leading Ecuador.

That was Gakpo’s cue. With de Jong looking for options and most Dutch attackers stagnant and marked up well by Senegal, Gakpo made eye contact and slashed in from the right half-space. De Jong’s lob was right on the money: just close enough to draw goalkeeper Édouard Mendy off his line, but into a space where Gakpo could arrive first to break the deadlock.

It’s the latest big moment for Gakpo, who drew intense transfer interest this summer from Manchester United, Leeds, and other clubs around Europe only to end up sticking with PSV. The 23-year-old debuted at PSV at 18, but really started to catch the eye in the 2019-2020 season, producing seven goals and seven assists in the Eredivisie.

Since then, Gakpo has scored 36 goals in all competitions, an excellent record for a midfielder/winger with just over 100 appearances for PSV. And now with this World Cup goal, the spotlight — and winter transfer interest — will likely keep growing.

Watch Gakpo give the Netherlands a World Cup win

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Senegal star Sadio Mane ruled out of World Cup with leg injury

It’s a huge blow for the African champions

Senegal star Sadio Mané has been ruled out for the World Cup with a fibula injury.

Mané suffered the injury in a game with Bayern Munich on November 8 and though he was subsequently named to Senegal’s World Cup squad, a federation official said earlier this week the 30-year-old would miss the “first games” of the tournament.

On Thursday, Senegal team doctor Manuel Afonso confirmed at a press conference that Mané was not responding well to treatment and the forward would be forced to undergo surgery.

“Sadly, today’s MRI has shown that the evolution is not as favorable as we’d imagined, and so we’ve resolved, sadly, to declare that Mané is out for this World Cup, and a surgical intervention will be scheduled very shortly,” Afonso said at a press conference.

Bayern announced later that Mané had undergone surgery in Innsbruck, Austria.

Mané was instrumental in leading Senegal to the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year and hopes were high that he could help his country to a deep run at this World Cup.

Though Senegal still has a strong squad including England-based stars Édouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly, Idrissa Gueye, and Ismaïla Sarr, the absence of Mané will be a major blow to the team’s chances.

Senegal has been drawn in Group A with Ecuador, the Netherlands and Qatar, and should still have a strong chance to get out of the group even without its superstar.

But losing a player who just finished second in the Ballon d’Or voting will always be difficult to overcome. Mané’s absence will be a blow not only to Senegal, but to the World Cup itself.

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Sadio Mane will miss Senegal’s ‘first games’ of the World Cup with injury

The African champions may have to make do without their superstar in Qatar

It’s not sounding great for Senegal star Sadio Mané’s chances of playing at the World Cup.

Mané was forced out of Bayern Munich’s game against Werder Bremen last week with a fibula injury, putting his status for the World Cup in doubt.

On Tuesday, Senegal federation board member Abdoulaye Sow offered an update on Mané. It wasn’t positive.

“We will have to rely on playing the first games without Sadio and win without Sadio because we have 25 players apart from Sadio,” Sow said in quotes published by the AP. “No one would have wanted it, but that’s what’s happened to us.”

That’s “games,” as in plural. Senegal, of course, will only play three group games and without Mané, its chances of advancement and a fourth game will diminish.

However, even without Mané, Senegal should still be a force. The African champions feature Chelsea duo Édouard Mendy and Kalidou Koulibaly, Everton’s Idrissa Gueye, and Watford star Ismaïla Sarr, among a host of other European-based players.

Senegal will play Qatar on Sunday in the World Cup opener, before also facing the Netherlands and Ecuador in Group A.

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FIFA to start 2022 World Cup a day early with Qatar vs. Ecuador

The World Cup is closer than you think

The World Cup is coming up even faster than it seems.

FIFA on Thursday confirmed reports that it would move the start of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar up a day, with the hosts now set to host Ecuador in a standalone opener on November 20.

Originally, the World Cup was set to open on November 21, with Senegal facing the Netherlands in the opening game of the tournament, and Qatar vs. Ecuador coming up later in the day.

That would have marked a break with tradition that has long seen either the host or the defending champion participate in the World Cup curtain-raiser.

However, FIFA—after what it calls “an assessment of the competition and operational implications, as well as a thorough consultation process and an agreement with key stakeholders and the host country”—has opted to return to that pattern, with Qatar now playing in the tournament’s first game, which will take place at the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor.

To go along with the change, FIFA has also changed the start time for that Senegal vs. Netherlands match, moving it from 1:00pm local time to 7:00pm. That will leave it nestled between the Group B doubleheader set for the same day, with England playing Iran at 4:00pm, and the U.S. men’s national team taking on Wales at 10:00pm.

FIFA added that there will be no change to the final date that clubs must release players to join their national teams, which remains November 14.

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Sadio Mané departs Liverpool for Bayern Munich

Mané’s trading one red kit for another

Sadio Mané’s move to Bayern Munich is officially done, with the Senegal forward making his move away from Liverpool complete on Wednesday.

Bayern are reported to have paid somewhere around $35 million for Mané, with the 30 year old bolstering an attack that may lose Robert Lewandowski this summer.

“Obviously it is strange – really, really strange – to no longer be a Liverpool player after six years spent at Anfield,” said Mané in a statement to Liverpool’s club site. “But of course I had a great time, an unbelievable time.”

In a statement on Bayern’s site, CEO and club legend Oliver Kahn praised Mané’s track record. “With his outstanding performances and his great successes at the highest international level over many years, there are very few players like him in the world,” said Kahn. “We’re sure that Sadio Mané will delight our fans in the coming years with his spectacular style of play. He’s ambitious and eager to win more titles.”

In his time at Liverpool, Mané was prolific, scoring 120 goals and adding 48 assists in 269 total appearances with the Reds. He was a regular for Liverpool sides that won a Premier League title, the FA Cup, the League Cup, and the UEFA Champions League. He also won the Golden Boot in the Premier League in 2018-19, and was the 2019 African Footballer of the Year.

How does Mané impact Bayern?

Lewandowski’s reported determination to force a move to Barcelona leaves an obvious hole in Bayern’s attack. Mané did spend most of his final weeks at Liverpool playing as a center forward, but his playing style is much different from Lewandowski’s, so it’s not simply a one-for-one.

However, with Bayern, there’s a deep supply of wide forwards as well, with Leroy Sané, Serge Gnabry, and Kingsley Coman all making over 30 appearances for the club last year. Thomas Müller was second on the entire team in minutes played, largely in the hole underneath Lewandowski, while 19-year-old attacking midfielder Jamal Musiala is also a player of growing importance.

The fact that Sané can play several positions complicates things, but in a good way. Julian Nagelsmann has the option of Sané leading the line in a different fashion from Lewandowski if the Poland striker does in fact move on, adding more speed to allow Bayern to make games more transition-oriented, but playing most of his minutes on the left remains a major possibility.

Sadio Mané nuevo jugador del Bayern Munich y nos encanta

El futbolista senegalés Sadio Mané será el nuevo refuerzo del Bayern Munich para la siguiente temporada.

El futbolista senegalés Sadio Mané será el nuevo refuerzo del Bayern Munich para la siguiente temporada.

Según información de la prensa en Inglaterra, el Liverpool y el equipo bávaro llegaron a un acuerdo para que le futbolista sea nuevo jugador del Munich .

La transferencia ronda los 40 millones de euros y el senagalés firmará con el Bayern hasta el 2025 para alegría de los hinchas alemanes que disfrutarán de su talento que lo llevó a marcar 23 goles en la pasada temporada.

Campeón de Champions League en 2019 y de la Premier League en 2020, el futuro de Mané luce muy prometedor en un equipo como el Bayern Munich que suele extraerle a sus jugadores su máximo.

Nos encanta el nuevo aire que toma la carrera de Sadio Mané pues su etapa en Liverpool fue muy productiva y ahora buscará ser el hombre de confianza de un nuevo técnico.

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Mo Salah had so many lasers pointed at his face before missing crucial Egypt penalty

Egypt is missing the World Cup now.

The 2022 World Cup in Qatar is going to be without one of soccer’s biggest stars, and Egypt supporters aren’t going to be particularly pleased with how the World Cup failure went down … and for good reason.

Senegal defeated Egypt in penalties on Tuesday in the second leg of their CAF qualifiers for the World Cup. Just as Senegal defeated Egypt in February to win the AFCON final, Sadio Mane buried the decisive penalty to send Senegal to Qatar.

But it was the penalty attempt from Mane’s Liverpool teammate Mo Salah that had plenty of fans taking issue. As Salah readied himself for his attempt from the spot, we could see dozens of green lasers pointed all around his face in an effort to blind and distract him. Salah would sky the penalty over the goal, and it was easy to understand why.

Just yikes. The official saw that and let play continue.

As much as penalty attempts are muscle memory, you’d ideally like to be able to see the ball before you strike it.

According to FIFA, the responsibility to prevent laser pointers falls on the host, which could result in disciplinary measures taken against the Senegal team — potentially, having them replay the shootout behind closed doors.

Via Input:

“As stated in the FIFA Stadium Safety and Security Regulations, laser pointers are considered prohibited items by FIFA and confiscated when the spectators are checked at the outer stadium perimeter,” a FIFA spokesperson tells Input. “When incidents happen within the applicable scope of FIFA’s Disciplinary Code, disciplinary measures may be taken based on article 16, paragraph 2,” which state that teams are liable for inappropriate behavior from their fans and they may be subject to disciplinary measures should they should show any negligence in stopping the “the use of laser pointers or similar electronic devices.”

Fans clearly weren’t pleased with how that situation was handled.