The CAF Qualifying stage came to an end this past Tuesday with Tunisia, Nigeria, Morocco, Egypt and Senegal booking their tickets to Russia. All five of teams have potential and could overachieve expectations but Senegal is the most exciting and promising team out of this CAF region.
The Lions of Teranga topped Group D of the CAF qualifying with 14 points finishing above Burkina Faso, Cape Verde and South Africa. Senegal finished off the qualifying stage very strong with three consecutive wins, the most recent one a 2-1 victory against South Africa at home. The 2018 FIFA World Cup will only be Senegal’s second appearance in the global competition, the other being in 2002. The West African side overachieved in the 2002 World Cup, reaching the quarterfinals and this team has more talent and has potential to reach that quarter-final stage and maybe even beyond that.
There is still a reminder of that 2002 team in manager Aliou Cissé, who comprised part of that national team that surprised the world. Cissé’s squad is very well-balanced in all of its components and should be able to compete even against the top teams in Russia.
Starting from the defense, with the captain Cheikhou Kouyaté, who plays as a centre-back for his team but can also play in a defensive midfield role. Kouyaté currently plays for West Ham United and has an immense physical presence standing in at 6-foot-4. His partner in the back line is arguably even more talented than him defensively in Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly.
The French-born defender even played for France’s U-20 squad but decided to represent Senegal in his senior career. Koulibaly stands in at 6-foot-5 and is consistent with his performances with Napoli in the Serie A and Champions League. The Centre-back tandem is among the most physical duo that will feature in the 2018 World Cup and can keep up with most forwards. Cissé did tinker with his lineup throughout the qualifiers and another player that has consistently featured and provided solid performances is Anderlecht’s Kara Mbodji.
The Anderlecht centre-back also provides a great presence at 6-foot-3 and has similar attributes to players like Kouyate and Koulibaly. There is plenty of depth in the defense with other players like FC Metz’s Fallou Diagne and Hanover 96’s Salif Sane who can fill in the centre-back spots. The full-back slots are a bit slimmer but there is still talent with the standout being Bordeaux’s Youssouf Sabaly. But there is enough coverage in the centre-back positions and in the midfield to make up for that.
The midfield is a force of its own with defensive prowess, massive physical presence and some creativity. Most of the creativity lies within the forwards on Senegal’s squad with the only real creative midfielder being Papa Alioune Ndiaye. The rest of the midfield is mostly comprised of physical players that are specialist in recovering the ball. Perhaps the most vital member of Cissé’s midfield is Everton’s Idrissa Gueye, who specializes in recovering the ball with similar characteristics to players like Claude Makelele and N’Golo Kante.
The rest of the midfielders offer an immense physical presence with players like Cheikh N’Doye and Alfred Alfred N’Diaye. Defenders like Cheikhou Kouyaté and Salif Sane are also versatile and can play in defensive midfield roles. All of these players range from 6-foot-2 to 6-foot-4 in height except for Idrissa Gueye and Papa Ndiaye and should be tough for any team to face in Russia.
Finally, the attack features several quick and skillful players that are also very clinical in front of the net. Of course, the superstar on Senegal is Liverpool’s Sadio Mane, who can be one of the best players in the English Premier League on his day. Mane has three goals and two assists so far and is a vital player both for Aliou Cissé and Jurgen Klopp. The 25-year-old has vision, skill, and is one of the fastest players the Premier League has seen in recent years.
There are a couple other players with similar characteristics on the Lions of Teranga like Keita Balde Diao of AS Monaco and Torino’s M’Baye Niang. Of course, these two players are not nearly as skillful but do offer that creativity and explosiveness going forward that can be lethal to any team. There is a lot of competition for the striker role on the team as there are several talented players that can fill that role. One of the more notable names is West Ham United’s Diafra Sakho, who can be very clinical and does bring some pace to his game.
Mame Diouf is a very similar player that has not been called to the national team recently but may get a chance to make the World Cup roster. 24-year-old Moussa Konate is another similar player that is probably quicker than both Sakho and Diouf, who could be an option for Aliou Cissé. The most experienced and arguably the most talented player that Cissé has as an option to fill that role is Moussa Sow. The 31-year-old is still very quick, skillful, physical and is arguably the most clinical finisher on the team.
Sow does play in Dubai now and it is unclear if that could affect his performance heading into the next World Cup along with his age. Regardless, there is still a plethora of options on the West African side that can fill in that striker role of needed that offer similar traits.
It will be interesting to see how Senegal fares in the 2018 World Cup with maybe its most talented team ever. The only other time the Lions of Teranga were in the global competition they made it to the quarterfinals and certainly Aliou Cissé’s squad has the potential to repeat that performance or even exceed it.
