Senegal forward Sadio Mané won’t be part of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 squad because he has an injury requiring him to stay away from football for three months.
Senegal national football team commonly known as the Lions of Teranga will be the first African team to play in this FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
Senegal are housed in Group A along with the Netherlands, the host country, Qatar, and Ecuador. They are scheduled to encounter The Netherlands team on Monday.
Sadio Mané the Bayern Munich striker was initially included in the Lions of Teranga squad for the global showpiece but was injured on November 8 and according to doctors, he will be unavailable for at least three months.
His absecence on the team has shaken Sengalese and Africa including the pride of Lions of Teranga.
“Senegal is not just Sadio, it’s a family, claims the ex-striker of Rc Lens and Liverpool. We would have loved him to play this World Cup and did everything to play it. I talk to him every day, he’s a brother. He believes in God, he knows that things like this can happen if God so decides,” said El Hadji Diouf the former Senegalese international and member of the technical management of the National Team.
“He will come back stronger. We won’t see him on the pitch, but he will stay with us here in Qatar. He will have an important role with the group to push his teammates to surpass themselves. All the players want to shine in this competition, so they will do everything to succeed without him in our mission, which is to pass this first round. We will work to show the world what the African champion is worth and make people happy at home, ”said the double African Ballon d’Or, winner.
Kalidou Koulibaly will be “Playing for Sadio Mané” and says, “We are ready to give everything for this World Cup. We will have to be ready, take more responsibility. This will be an opportunity for others to show themselves. You have to play for him, do things well. He really wanted to play this World Cup.”
For Nampalys Mendy, “In recent years, we have created a lot of automatisms with him. Unfortunately, he won’t be with us at this World Cup. We will therefore have to adapt quickly and do without him, starting already against the Netherlands. We have a strong group, with quality. We have to have confidence in ourselves. There is no one who died. Sadio is someone very important, we will have to honor him and make him proud throughout this World Cup. It is partly thanks to him that we are here.”
