Senegal will be without Sadio Mane at the World Cup in Qatar, while Memphis Depay will miss Netherlands opening Group A clash.
Sadio Mane is the main man for Senegal and proved so crucial in their historic AFCON win earlier this year but will now require surgery despite being named in Aliou Cisse’s 26-man squad.
As a result, Cisse is likely to deploy Krepin Diatta and Ismaila Sarr alongside Boulaye Dia in
a frontline still boasting some pretty impressive firepower, albeit one that has lost its star quality.
Chelsea pair Edouard Mendy and Kalidou Koulibaly proved colossal in Cameroon earlier this year and will continue to marshal the
defence, with Premier League pair Idrissa Gueye and Nampayls Mendy adding steel and guile to the midfield.
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Netherlands:
Lous van Gaal has moved his team away from the 4-3-3 system so closely connected with his country’s footballing identity.
Virgil van Dijk, Jurrien Timber and Nathan Ake represent a stern backline, with Denzel Dumfries and Daley Blind expected to operate as wing-backs.
Depay has been suffering with injury problems all season and will not start for the Dutch,
though should be fully available when they play Ecuador on Friday.
Senegal predicted XI (4-3-3):
Mendy;
Sabaly, Cisse, Koulibaly, Ballo-Toure;
P Sarr, N Mendy, Gueye;
Sarr, Dia, Diatta
Netherlands predicted XI (5-2-1-2):
Noppert;
Dumfries, Timber, van Dijk, Ake;
Blind; De Jong, Koopmeiners;
Gakpo; Janssen, Bergwijn
