When Aliou Cissé’s Senegal bundled over each other in their brilliant white kits at the end of their last group stage game against Ecuador at the FIFA World Cup 2022, it was confirmation already that this competition will be remembered for a while, not just for what is happening off the pitch, but also for what has happened so far on it. Australia became the first Asian nation to seal their knockout spot with a remarkable win against Denmark, qualifying from a group no one thought they would get out of.
Their head coach Cissé’s story — that he was captain of the side when they last made it to the knockouts (in 2002) — was also a moment to remember a hero of the past. The team paid tribute to the late Papa Bouba Diop, who scored three goals including the winner against France in 2002, with a World Cup defining victory on his death anniversary (29 November). A true lion never dies — said a banner they held up with Diop’s picture on it.
Their captain Kalidou Koulibaly wore a special armband with Diop’s number 19 on it, and spoke like the captain of a side which stands united unlike any other in their efforts. “We knew we wanted to play in his honour, this wasn't something we were going to let slip. We wanted to pay homage to him, he made me dream when I was a boy. We wanted to commemorate the great player he was. He's a legend of Senegalese football,” he said.
The 20 years in between have seen their ups and downs: Senegal failed to qualify for three World Cups in a row, and then got knocked out of the 2018 edition thanks to Japan’s better fairplay record. But they had beaten Poland 2-1 and drew with Japan 2-2 before losing to Colombia. Apart from Cameroon in 1990 and Ghana in 2010, Senegal are the only African side to make it to the World Cup knockouts. The other two countries might still be able to join the Lions of Teranga, and there is still a chance for Morocco to make it. Up next for Senegal are England, who will need every ounce of creativity to break past the clutches of Senegal’s resilient middle of the park, made of Edouard Mendy and Koulibaly, Abdou Diallo, Nempalys Mendy, and Idrissa Gueye. Up front are the blistering and technical Ismaila Sarr and Boulaye Dia.
While Senegal were confident of a good campaign even without injured star player Sadio Mane, there was not much expectation in Australia for a miracle. But images of celebrations in Australia, with streets spilling over with supporters, have clogged social media after their unlikely advance into the last 16.
“When you saw France and Denmark in the group, we thought the best we could hope for was four points if we beat Tunisia. So, to get six has exceeded everyone’s expectations. The team has gone into this with an underdog mentality and they have a very motivational coach who will make sure this is something special,” said former international Erik Paartalu, who has also won the Indian Super League (ISL) with Bengaluru FC in 2019.
He says that the benefits of blooding a very young team in the previous World Cup at the cost of three defeats are now clear to see in this edition, since none of the players have looked overawed by the occasion. Half of Australia’s contingent at the World Cup have played 10 games or fewer. The statistics used in an ESPN article on the chances of Australia to progress from the knockouts make them look bleak: “You don't get outshot more than 2-to-1, with the second-worst xG (expected goals) differential (per-match) of the 32 teams, and advance very far. They got their doors blown off by France, they allowed Tunisia to attempt three of the match's four most high-value shots (per xG) while scoring on a low-percentage flick, and they have completed just 73 per cent of their pass attempts, the second-lowest in the competition (ahead of Iran, who still attempted way more shots and created far more shot value),” it says.
But Paartalu believes the whole country cannot wait to see what the team does against Lionel Messi’s Argentina. “Everyone expects Messi to score a hat-trick but there have been so many upsets this World Cup. Argentina have lost to Saudi Arabia and there’s no reason why Australia can’t (do the same). The challenge will be to settle down emotionally from the celebrations of the past few days and focus on what’s next.”
Their head coach Graham Arnold nearly got sacked given how the team barely managed to qualify for the World Cup after a penalty shootout win against Peru. But having been through the rungs of youth teams and all the way to the seniors as a player and coach, Paartalu believes he “will reflect his experiences onto the team.”
Arnold’s motivational tactics are there for all to see — he challenges this side to be better than the one in 2006, which boasted of stars like Harry Kewell and Mark Viduka. They won four points in that edition and this one has six. “Maybe we’re talking about a new golden generation now because we’ve been listening and hearing about the golden generation of 2006 who got four points — and now we’ve got six. I’m just so proud of the players, the work ethic, the commitment, the fight, the way they played,” he said after the win over Denmark.
Australia will play Argentina on December 3, and England will take on Senegal on December 4.
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