Senegal: Impressive but Naive

Day 2 of the Qatar 2022 World Cup started out with a bit of a mismatch with England’s destruction of Iran 6-2. Hence it was a welcome development to watch Senegal step things up against three-time finalists The Netherlands.

Whilst the performance was encouraging from the Teranga Lions of Senegal, they still fell short of delivering the desired result. African teams continue to depend on their physical attributes but we all know that at this stage this is never enough to get a team to the next level.

African teams need to be better technically and more efficient especially in the final third. This is the particular area in which the Senegalese fell short on the night. These are my five major conclusions from Senegal’s first game at Qatar 2022:

Solid press and defensively compact

I like the way the Senegalese set up from the on-set; well organized and compact. In fact, the Netherlands’ first goal was their first shot on target; that was a testament to how well drilled this Senegal team are. They set into a low block quite well; but pressed aggressively on occasion. Now the beauty in the Senegalese press was that it wasn’t haphazard or just for the thought or fun of pressing; it was constructive and deliberate. It’s quite unfortunate they were lacking in critical areas and not good enough when and where it counts the most.

 

Cutting the passing lanes

The Dutch are know for their desire to boss possession and find those crucial passes in between the lines. The midfield three of  Idrissa Gana Gueye, Nampalys Mendy and Cheikhou Kouyate were excellent in his role in midfield; sometimes switching to a double pivot allowing the third man in midfield to join the press.

Aliou Cisse’s men made it difficult for the Dutch to find those passing lines to split the Senegalese defense; all due to the brilliant work of the midfield trio.

 

Poor deliveries at Set pieces

Senegal, for all the height and presence they possess going into the Dutch box at set pieces, were quite poor with their deliveries. I mentioned in my preview that I felt the lack of creativity in the Senegalese midfield would be a major drawback for them.  Idrissa Gana Gueye was the main culprit as he was the designated set piece taker for the Senegalese. Isn’t it ironic that the Dutch took the lead off a quality delivery into the box; something the Senegalese struggled with all game.

 

Mane is a huge miss

I was one of the first to say the Senegalese need to snap out of Sadio Mane’s unavailability at this World Cup but you could clearly see how much of a miss his presence was in that team. His leadership, the guile and precision at which he plays with would have complimented  the efforts of Ismalia Sarr up front.

 

A lack of concentration

It is symptomatic of African teams to lose concentration at the later part of football matches at this level; we can catalogue the number of times African teams were so close to earning a decent result only for things to take an unexpected turn. Edouard Mendy will take the bulk of the blame on both goals; if a goalie must come for a cross into the box; he just has to get there and also make the forward know it. The spill for the second goal is totally unacceptable.

 

There’s still some hope for Senegal though; their next game is against Qatar. I expect them to win that to set up a winner take all clash with Ecuador to qualify from the group.

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