England vs Senegal: A tantalizing clash between Lions in store
It will be a battle between Lions as England and Senegal prepare to square off in the round of 16 on Sunday. The Three Lions, who finished as runners-up in the 2020 EURO competition, will take on the Lions of Teranga in what should be an entertaining match for fans and neutrals alike.
England come into this contest having topped Group B. They started their World Cup journey with a resounding 6-2 win over Iran, before drawing the USMNT in a scoreless stalemate, and concluded their group stage campaign with a comfortable 3-0 win over Wales. Gareth Southgate’s side made it to the final four last time out, only to see their dreams shattered as surprise finalists Croatia beat them in the semi-finals, and as such, the Three Lions will be hoping to go one step further and finally “bring it home”.
Of course, the journey to the final is just started, and Senegal, who are the reigning AFCON winners, will be one of many strong sides that will stand in England’s way. Aliou Cisse’s side started off their tournament on rocky footing, as they unfortunately lost 2-0 to the Netherlands, but quickly regained their footing as they battled to a 3-1 win over World Cup hosts Qatar, before edging out Ecuador 2-1 in their final group stage match to earn a ticket to the round of 16. It was a historic win, as Senegal became the first African team to beat a South American side at a World Cup since Cameroon trounced Colombia back in 1990, thus ending a frustrating 21 match run for teams across the continent. Days later, Cameroon would also make history as the first African side to beat Brazil, albeit it wasn’t enough to see them through to the round of 16.
Senegal are one of two African sides in the knockout rounds, with Morocco topping their quartet to set up their own showdown with a European giant in the form of Spain. The Lions of Teranga could have to face England without Cisse on the bench, as the manager is currently struggling with illness that has kept him in bed for the past few days.
The AFCON winners will need to overcome a rather inconsistent record when it comes to playing European sides at World Cups. To date, they’ve had mixed results, alternating between a win and a draw (or loss) in their last six ties against UEFA teams. If one does believe in patterns, given that they lost recently to the Netherlands, then the pendulum should swing in favor of a win for the African nation. That being said, England have a solid track record at World Cups against African sides, with a record of four wins and three draws so far. To cap things off, the Three Lions have never lost to an African team in any competition in the nation’s history, and they certainly will not want to see that record fall on Sunday. And African teams in general have struggled against European opposition, with losses in eight of their last nine knockout round meetings in this competition.
The one outlier? Senegal, who earned a well-deserved win over Sweden back in 2002 to book a spot in the quarter-finals.
With a draw not suiting either side, one of these teams will be seeing their long standing record snapped. Depending on who one supports, it will be viewed as a positive or negative thing. Will it be the Lions of Teranga to roar into the quarter-finals? Or will the Three Lions take one step closer towards finally “bringing it home”?
