Senegal’s 26-man-squad has been announced for the World Cup. Despite an injury, Sadio Mane is one of the chosen ones.
Mané’s choice was surrounded by asterisks. The forward got an injury while playing for Bayern Munich, which could cost him the World Cup. Despite worries about his captain’s employability, national coach Aliou Cissé has included him in his World Cup squad, as expected, he revealed during a news conference.
Bayern Munich is less thrilled with Mane’s selection. The Bavarian club is concerned about the health of their attacker, who was injured last week. Bayern has horrible memories of players who are injured shortly before a World Cup but nevertheless compete in the finals. The situation with Arjen Robben prior to the 2010 World Cup caused friction between the German club and the KNVB.
Famara Diédhiou is a standout among the World Cup squad. Despite receiving only 22 minutes of playing time with Alanyaspor in Turkey, Cissé has called up the attacker. Mbaye Diagne, who scored seven goals for Fatih Karagümrük in the Turkish league this season, was not chosen.
Senegal will begin their campaign against the Netherlands on November 20. Qatar and Ecuador will be their other opponents in the group.
Senegal’s 26-man-squad
Goalies: Seny Dieng of QPR, Alfred Gomis of Rennes, Edouard Mendy of Chelsea
Defence: Kalidou Koulibaly of Chelsea, Ismail Jakobs of Monaco, Pape Abou Cisse of Olympiacos, Abdou Diallo of RB Leipzig, Youssouf Sabaly of Real Betis, Formose Mendy of Amiens, Fode Ballo Toure of Milan
Midfield: Pape Matar Sarr of Tottenham, Pape Gueye of Marseille, Idrissa Gana Gueye of Everton, Nampalys Mendy of Leicester, Moustapha Name of Pafos, Mamadou Loum of Reading, Cheikhou Kouyate of Crystal Palace, Krepin Diatta of Monaco, Pathe Ciss of Rayo Vallecano
Forward: Sadio Mane of Bayern Munich, Ismaila Sarr of Watford, Bamba Dieng of Marseille, Nicolas Jackson of Villareal, Ilman Ndiaye of Sheffield United, Boulave Dia of Salernitana, Famara Diedhiou of Alanyaspor.
