The hosts play Senegal in their second game with it being a ‘must win’ for both sides if they have any chance of progressing through Group A. With both sides mirroring each other’s results – a 2-0 defeat in Game 1. A goal for either side in this one will give both teams huge confidence in the game.
As highlighted in Senegal’s first game, the loss of Sadio Mane before the tournament began is a huge miss and a big reason why Senegal will continue to be low scorers in this tournament. After creating 14 attempts on goal in their opening loss to Netherlands, only 3 of them actually tested the Dutch goal, and without a clinical striker, they will need to test the keeper a lot more in this game to give them the best opportunity of collecting the 3 points.
Senegal displayed a positive performance against the Dutch, having 47% possession and containing the opposition, until Gakpo made the breakthrough in the 84th minute. Comparing this to Qatar who failed to have a single shot on target and looked way out of their depth against Ecuador, the African side will be confident of getting the job done and add more misery to the host’s campaign.
I can only see a Senegal victory in this one, with Qatar looking very poor on the opening day. If they can get an early goal, it will settle any nerves and allow them to showcase the talent they have in their ranks.
Score Prediction: 0-2
Bet Prediction: Senegal -1 Goal Handicap
