England face Senegal for the first time as the two teams compete for a spot in the Quarter finals
England and Senegal cross-swords for the first time vying for a quarter final spot in Qatar as both teams continue their quest for silverware.
In 2018, the Three Lions were handed an embarrassing defeat by Croatia in the semi-finals, a feat Gareth Southgate would look to improve as his team enters the knockout stage.
The Three Lions had a scintillating start to their World Cup campaign brushing aside Iran in their opening fixture. But a goalless draw against USA raised a few eyebrows on England’s attacking intent before those speculations were put to bed in a 3-0 routing of Wales.
Now Gareth Southgate would once again want his forward battery to go all guns blazing when they encounter the African side. The Three Lions haven’t lost a competitive game against an African outfit in their past 20 meetings and would once again be favourites going into this round of 16 match.
With Southgate and co. carrying the hopes of a billion British fans, the mixture of youth and experience could be the reason why England are the favorites going into the fixture.
The reigning African champions should not be taken as a light opposition by their European counterparts. Despite losing their opening match to Netherlands, Senegal outperformed Qatar and Ecuador in their next games to secure a round of 16 ticket.
And although they are without their talismanic striker Sadio Mane, the Lions of Teranga have shown resilience and strength in Qatar.
In the previous knockout encounters between African and European teams, the latter have almost emerged victorious every time with only exception being a Senegalese win against Sweden. Cisse and Senegal would want to repeat the past and provide another upset in the Middle East.
England XI (4-3-3): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Rice, Henderson, Bellingham; Saka, Kane, Foden
Senegal XI (4-3-3): E. Mendy; Sabaly, Koulibaly, Diallo, Jakobs; P. Gueye, N. Mendy, Ciss; Ndiaye, Dia, I. Sarr
The winner of this round of 16 match will lock horns with France in the Quarter finals in Qatar.
<img src="” title=”England vs Senegal : Lineups and LIVE updates” />
India delivered a commanding performance in the Women's Asian Champions Trophy, thrashing Thailand 13-0 in… Read More
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has unveiled key details regarding the… Read More
At just 23 years old, Irfan Yadwad has emerged as one of Indian football’s brightest… Read More
Carlos Alcaraz admitted he could be better after beating Andrey Rublev in his second match… Read More
NorthEast United FC head coach Juan Pedro Benali said he always believed in the club’s… Read More
Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has opened up on interim coach Ruud van Nistelrooy… Read More