Senegal 2, Poland 1
For the second time Tuesday, we have a 2-1 Group H upset as Senegal took down Poland in Moscow. There will be questions about the officials’ handling of the game action, but the fact remains that the Lions of Teranga handled their duties with aplomb and never let Poland mount much of anything until the frenzied final moments. Poland’s Robert Lewandowski, such a force in qualifying, was mostly a nonentity. And, when he was called on to make stops, goalkeeper Khadim Ndiaye was there with his fists to pound the ball away.
Raise your hand if you had Senegal and Japan atop Group H with three points apiece after the first round of group-stage play. You, my friend, are a seer.
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What’s next
Poland: vs. Colombia in Kazan, June 24.
Senegal: vs. Japan in Ekaterinburg, June 24.
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In-game updates
Goal!
Poland gets on the board in the 86th minute as a free kick finds its way to the head of Grzegorz Krychowiak, who bops it in. There was even more confusion over whether the official had stopped play for a substitute, and Senegal’s players appeared to be looking toward the sideline. This has not been the finest moment for Bahraini referee Nawaf Shukralla, whose game management will certainly be question afterward along with the sideline officials.
Chaos in the final moments
In the 85th minute, Ismaila Sarr is taken down in the box. It gets a check and there’s no penalty shot. Senegal Coach Aliou Cissé, meanwhile, is warned by the officials to stay in his designated sideline location.
One last sub for Poland
In need of fresh legs, Poland sends in Bartosz Bereszynski to replace Lukasz Piszczek in the 83rd minute.
Gana booked
Idrissa Gana takes a bad stab at the ball and ends up spiking Lewandowski in the 72nd minute. He’s shown the yellow.
Shortly after, Poland uses its first substitute: Dawid Kownacki in for Arkadiusz Milik. Then, Niang the goal scorer comes out for Moussa Konate.
Goal!
After some confusion over a Senegal attempt to sub in a player, Mbaye Niang scampers off the sideline and — after a dreadful attempt by Krychowiak to bomb the ball back to his goalkeeper — finds the ball on a dead run at midfield. With nothing between himself and Wojciech Szczesny, it’s a 60th-minute goal — Niang’s first-ever international tally — and Senegal is up 2-0. Fox Sports’ rules expert says the referee completely botched the substitute process, and VAR has no protocol to review it. The goal, apparently, will stand.
Early booking for Senegal
With Robert Lewandowski charging up the field after he picked a Senegal player’s pocket, he’s brought down hard by Salif Sane right at the top of the box. Yellow card for Sane, but Lewandowski’s free kick is punched out by Khadim Ndiaye.
Halftime: Senegal 1, Poland 0
In a half in which neither team was able to gain a clear edge, it’s only fitting that the lone goal was a fluky own goal. The Lions of Teranga seemed to spend more time pressing forward as the half wore on. Favored Poland wasn’t able to cobble together much of anything.
Robert Lewandowski scored a record 16 goals in European qualifying but was invisible in the first half for Poland. We’ll see if that continues.
Goal!
Senegal breaks through with a lucky goal in the 37th minute. Idrissa Gana sends a shot that bounces off Thiago Cionek and past a helpless Wojciech Szczesny. It’s the first time Poland has trailed since a 1-0 friendly loss to Nigeria in March, a span of three matches.
It’s the fourth own goal of this World Cup, and the first round of group-stage matches isn’t over yet. The full-tournament record is six, in 1998.
A little bit of trivia
Senegal is one of two World Cup teams this year with zero players stationed in its domestic pro league (Sweden is the other). Fourteen Senegal players take the field for club teams in England or France.
Another chance wasted by Senegal
Niang takes a pretty ball after a nice breakout by Youssouf Sabaly and has a step on his defender, but his breakaway attempt skitters far to the right of Szczesny.
Yellow for Krychowiak
After he was stripped of the ball at midfield, Grzegorz Krychowiak is booked for taking down Mbaye Niang in the 12th minute. Sadio Mane’s free-kick attempt on goal from far afield goes well wide, and we play on scoreless.
Not much to report
The two sides are still feeling each other out in the early going, with little in the way of chances. Mbaye Niang sent one in on Wojciech Szczesny in the seventh minute, but he handled it clearly.
Opening thoughts
Poland was able to manipulate FIFA’s rankings into a good draw for the tournament as one of its seeded teams — thus avoiding some of the world’s powers — by steadfastly refusing to play friendlies. Still, it’s a solid team that advanced to the Euro 2016 quarterfinals before losing to eventual champion Portugal. Senegal Coach Aliou Cissé — one of the heroes of the team’s 2002 run — has been criticized in some corners for his conservative tactics during qualification, but he was able to get the Lions of Teranga through without a loss.
The starting lineups
Of note: Veteran central defender Kamil Glik isn’t starting for Poland after injuring himself while trying a bicycle kick in practice a few weeks back. Senegal central defender Kara Mbodj also will start on the bench; he’s played in only two games since December.
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