Five things Teranga Lions must do to beat Three Lions

From Senegal’s Teranga Plains to the extinct ones who once roamed the countryside outside of London, it’s a battle of lions on Sunday at the 60,000-capacity Al Bayt Stadium in Doha.

African champions Senegal take on the world football’s nearly men in England. The English are the clear favourites in Sunday’s encounter, although Senegal have a fair chance of winning if they can play to their strengths and try to neutralise the Three Lions’ most potent strengths.

These are five things for the Senegalese to do and get a famous victory.

Sabaly cannot over-commit to attack

Marcus Rashford, the most effective English attacker at the moment, will start on England’s left side. This will put him in direct opposition with Youssouf Sabaly, who has been reliable throughout the tournament.

Gareth Southgate will want to take advantage of any chance to take advantage of the Senegalese defender’s attacking foray through Luke Shaw and the fast Rashford. Though the Real Betis full-back is also a strong offensive outlet for Senegal, Coach Cisse must advise defensive concentration above offensive forays.

Push Loum up the pitch to disrupt Henderson

Declan Rice and Jordan Henderson will probably start at the base of England’s midfield. The Liverpool captain will probably be the team’s greatest passer and tempo controller, so it is imperative to disturb him.

In order to stop this flow, Aliou Cisse must have the guts to push a midfielder a long way up the field. Idrissa Gueye, who is currently on suspension, would have done a fantastic job in this situation, but Cheikhou Kouyate or Mamadou Loum can still complete this role.

Move Sarr to the right flank to face Shaw

It would be reckless for Cisse to use Ismaila Sarr’s quickness and cleverness against the powerful and nimble Walker now that he is back in full force. Sarr can, however, highlight Luke Shaw’s weaknesses on the right wing, namely a lack of focus and a propensity for giving up simple free kicks because of a lack of genuine pace.

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Boulaye Dia must disrupt John Stones

In England’s first three games, John Stones completed 278 of 290 passes successfully, moving the ball farther than any other Three Lions and serving as a true focal point for their attacks. Boulaye Dia, who has one goal to his credit in Qatar, can be used mostly as the press instigator to throw the English off their game. He needs to keep a tight eye on the Manchester City defender and take advantage of any chance of closing him down.

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Teranga Lions must be brave

The Teranga Lions were aggressive from the off against Ecuador, and even after being set behind by Ecuador’s equaliser, they promptly stepped up their offensive efforts. They must have observed in Qatar that super teams no longer exist in football. Cameroon defeated Brazil, France lost to Tunisia, Germany lost to Japan, and Argentina to Saudi Arabia. All that these teams did was be courageous and take their scoring chances.