By Isaac Akugizibwe,
WORLD CUP 2022
It is the second day of the knockout stage of the FIFA world cup in Qatar and as Senegal takes on England this evening, another serve of exctacy is on the Menu. Whereas the odds are in favour of England, the vast majority of Africa believe that the lions of Teranga have what it takes to steal the show to the quarter finals.
This will be the first time the two Nations are meeting and all will look to win to own the bragging rights. The team that wins will go to the quarter finals but for Senegal a win means the best representation of the African hope that this the time to bring the world cup home. But where is Senegal’s competitive advantage?
Teamwork – The absence of star man Sadio Mane is the other hand a very big advantage to Senegal especially in the knockouts. Being with out a star man to depend on means each member of team will need to cover up the gap while playing as a unit. With teamwork,the lions of Teranga can stun the English. They have already provedthat they are much more than Sadio Mane.
Self Belief -It is the strong positive belief with in the Senegal camp that has seen them through to the Knockout phase of the World cup even after losing the World’s second best player a few days to kickoff and managing a comeback following defeat in the first match in group A. If they that level of confidence,they stand a chance.
The African trust -Senegal are the most African team and the expense of the Atlas Lions of Morocco who topped group E .They have almost all of Africa’s trust and won’t just think of anything below making Africa proud.
Physicality and Pace -Gary Southgate’s English team is perhaps the most unpredictable in Qatar but one thing they haven’t hidden in Qatar is their intensity and abilities on the ball going forward. The likes of Phil Foden, Marcus Ratchford, Harry Kane,Jack Grealish,Bukayo Saka and Rahim Sterling can be lethal in attack. Senegal has to play more with bodies than the ball to counter them. This is where the Likes Koulibaly thrive.The Lions of Teranga have also proved quite dangerous going forward and it with highly intensive pace that they can put England whose defense is commanded by hapless Maguire on the edge.
Koulibaly’s leadership -You can be sure that the Senegalese defense will have a busy night but all hope will be in skipper Kalidou Koulibaly,the scorer of the winner against Ecuador. He is a rock in that defense and his ability to step up in tough occasions will be key as he faces an English forward line led by a hungry Harry Kane.
England have proved one of the best teams in this World Cup so far but are yet to be fully tested and today’s match could be their major test in Qatar, a tournament that has taught us that it is never over until it is over.
Aliou Cisse’s lions have all it takes to upset England and if he is to be the first to end Africa’s long wait,it is one match to start with.
