Senegal will play for Mane, says Koulibaly.

Kalidou Koulibaly, a defender for Senegal and Chelsea, emphasized that the current African champions Senegal are talented and ready to demonstrate their abilities as they begin their FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 campaign without the injured Sadio Mane.

Tomorrow at the Al Thumama Stadium, the West Africans will play their first World Cup Group A match against the Netherlands. On November 25, they will also play the host country Qatar, followed by Ecuador four days later.

Senegal will attempt to improve upon their last World Cup performance, when they were eliminated due to a FIFA Fair Play regulation. The team would continue to believe and play their “aggressive” brand of football, according to Koulibaly.

“It’s true that Mane won’t be with us for this World Cup. He is a leader for us and a key player. We were a little disappointed when we learned he couldn’t attend the World Cup, but we must continue to train and compete for him because he so desperately wanted to go. As a result, I believe the Senegal team will support him, and we will demonstrate our reliability to everyone, Koulibaly said.

Ismaila Sarr, Keita Balde, and other Watford players will now be relied upon by Aliou Cisse’s team to carry the bulk of the offense. The group will also need the leadership of Koulibaly and Cheikhou Kouyate in defense, Edouard Mendy of Chelsea in goal, and Idrissa Gueye and Nampalys Mendy’s strong midfield presence in Mane’s absence.