Senegal played Bolivia in a friendly match to prepare for the World Cup on Saturday in Orleans. The African nation won 2-0 thanks to goals scored by Boulaye Dia (in the fourth minute) and Sadio Mané (in the 44th minute, as a substitute). “Aliou Cissé, the coach of the Lions of Teranga, expressed his pleasure with his team’s triumph, saying, “I am extremely glad about this victory, winning develops confidence, and it bodes well for the World Cup.” My only true regret is that I did not manage to rack up more points.
Senegal triumphed because of a tremendous strike from Dia that made “bowl” (she hit the net before coming out of the goal, editor’s note) and a penalty provoked by Mané, very in legs. Senegal was the superior team, and they won thanks to those goals. The Lions have maintained their 4-3-3 formation despite the absence of several players, most notably the injured Youssouf Sabaly and Bouna Sarr (both of whom were ineligible to compete in the World Cup).
“Aliou Cissé emphasized the significance of maintaining continuity and avoiding any radical shifts in strategy now that the competition is less than two months away. The 3-5-2 formation is something we do in training and could use as a variation during the game, but I’d rather stick with our tried-and-true strategies, which helped us win the CAN and earn a spot in the World Cup! Pablo Escobar, who is Bolivia’s head coach, acknowledged Senegal’s supremacy based on the qualities of their players and the fact that they compete in the highest-level competitions.
According to Aliou Cissé, Senegal will play their next preparation match against Iran in Vienna on Tuesday with an entirely different team than the one that competed in the previous match. Senegal will be in the same group as Qatar, the Netherlands, and Ecuador when the World Cup takes place from November 20 to December 18. Aliou Cissé, who was reflecting on his recent victory over Uruguay, said that Iran, another globalist nation that is part of the same group as the United States, England, and Wales, is an opponent that is “a cut above” Bolivia (1-0 on Friday).