Senegal defeated 3-1

LIVE: Can Senegal Hold Its Own Against France?

France, the 2022 World Cup runner-up, got off to a perfect start in the 2026 World Cup—albeit with some initial difficulties …(Bild: AFP/ANGELA WEISS)

It’s done—Les Bleus have cleared the first of eight hurdles on their path to a third World Cup title. Unlike in the 2002 tournament, France kicked off this World Cup not with a loss, but with a victory over Senegal! In front of over 80,000 spectators at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, the 2022 World Cup runners-up defeated the 2022 World Cup round of 16 team 3–1 —and thus erased, at least a little, the bitter humiliation from over 20 years ago…

Back then, on May 31, 2002, the “Equipe Tricolore” had entered the World Cup in South Korea and Japan as defending champions with high expectations —and suffered a crushing defeat thanks to a goal by Papa Bouba Diop, from which they would never recover. Sensationally, the tournament was over for the French after the group stage; they managed to secure nothing more than a measly single point against Uruguay in their group standings.

The French Team(Bild: AP/The Associated Press)

The Senegal team(Bild: APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Darrian Traynor)

While current Senegal coach Pape Thiaw was part of the African team that celebrated their run to the quarterfinals (eliminated by Turkey!), his French counterpart, Didier Deschamps, had already “retired” as a player by the time of the 2022 World Cup. Before retiring as head coach following the World Cup in North America, the sélectionneur sent his “Les Bleus” into the match in a flexible 4-2-3-1 formation, fielding top-tier offensive talents Kylian Mbappé, Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembélé, and Désiré Doué in the lineup. The Senegalese also fielded a fairly attacking lineup, with veteran star Sadio Mané as the left winger in a 4-3-3 formation.

An offensive spectacle? Not a chance!
But did these lineups lead to an offensive fireworks display from both teams? Not a chance! In the first 25 minutes, there wasn’t a single real shot on goal—neither from France nor from Senegal. To put it positively: the defensive lines, led by Dayot Upamecano and Kalidou Koulibaly, respectively, were perfectly coordinated. Mbappé was targeted several times with long passes, but sometimes his control was off (4th, 12th), sometimes the pass was too far (14th), and sometimes a dribble resulted in nothing but a corner kick (23rd).

Kylian Mbappé(Bild: AFP/CHARLY TRIBALLEAU)

The first clear-cut chance, then, belonged to the compact West African side, who didn’t venture into the opponent’s defensive third very often, but when they did, they were dangerous: After Mbappé lost possession, the Senegalese quickly transitioned; Malick Diuof sent Nicolas Jackson on a run, during which the former Bayern star managed, for once, to get past Bayern’s defensive leader Upamecano—and then took a shot. France goalkeeper Mike Maignan would have been beaten, but the ball hit the post and then bounced off the goalkeeper’s heels—without crossing the line (25th minute).

Senegal kept up the pressure until halftime
France’s response? There wasn’t really one! Plenty of possession in the harmless zones of their own defense or in midfield (at times up to 64 percent!), but up front they lacked precision, pace, or the element of surprise—the Senegalese were primarily made to sweat by the roughly 25 degrees Celsius in the stadium. Unsurprisingly, the next two (and final) chances of the first half also belonged to Coach Thiaw’s squad: First, Mané, after a pass from Sarr, was denied by goalie Maignan (and his shot was too central), and just before the halftime whistle, Sarr, after a pass from the left, shot well over the bar from inside the penalty area —if he’d shot with his left foot instead of his right, it probably would have gone in (45’+6) …

When play resumed, both teams suddenly seemed transformed, as if the real Mbappé, the real Dembelé, the real Mané, and the real Lamine Camara had suddenly been substituted in for their listless twin brothers. Now it was mainly the significantly improved French who were creating chances—and how: First, Doué blasted a shot from about 18 meters just wide of the Senegal goal (47.), then Olise—who had since moved from the right to the center—tested goalkeeper Edouard Mendy (53'), who shortly afterward also thwarted a last-second chance by Mbappé (56'). Shortly afterward, referee Alireza Faghani did NOT award France a penalty after a challenge between Mané and Mbappé in the Senegal penalty area (61'). For whatever reason…

France coach Didier Deschamps(Bild: AFP/FRANCK FIFE)

Deschamps’s agitated expression
France coach Deschamps’ facial expressions, which had been thrown off track by this—at the very least—very, very, very questionable decision, soon returned to normal, however, as the French were rewarded five minutes after the penalty was denied for their improved performance after the break. Olise dismantled the entire Senegal defense with a brilliant pass to Mbappé, who—for once—controlled the ball flawlessly while turning and slotted it low into the left corner for the now-deserved 1-0 lead (66'). “Les Bleus” had to weather a scare immediately afterward when, on a counterattack following a through ball, Jackson suddenly found himself one-on-one with Maignan and scored—but: He had been offside when the pass was made, so the goal was rightly disallowed (68').

After another chance by Doué, which Senegal goalkeeper Mendy was able to thwart (74'), it was Jackson once again who had the equalizer at his feet—but after a cross from Diouf, his shot went over the bar (78'). So it was up to the French to deal the final blow to the West Africans’ hopes of a draw before the very final moments, or so it seemed: The Senegalese couldn’t keep up with a lightning-fast French combination; Adrien Rabiot sent the freshly substituted Bradley Barcola on his way down the right, and the PSG player lobbed the ball over Mendy into the net in what felt like the decisive goal.

Bradley Barcola(Bild: AFP/CHARLY TRIBALLEAU)

A Turbulent Final Phase with a Happy Ending for France
It felt that way because the Senegalese—who had been so careless with their few but good chances in the first half—suddenly found the back of the net deep into stoppage time. Ibrahim Mbaye (another PSG star) dribbled past Theo Hernández—who had already looked a bit shaky at times—making him appear older than his 31 years would suggest, and from close range, Maignan had no chance against the resulting shot (95').

But even before the cheers of the Senegalese fans in the stands had completely died down, Mbappé—from the French perspective—finally sealed the deal in a match that had been so hard-fought for so long: Olise drew all eyes—and two Senegalese defenders—to him, then played a perfect pass to Mbappé on the right, who simply took a shot from about 30 meters out—and scored to make it 3–1 (97.).

The result:
France – Senegal 3–1 (0–0)
East Rutherford, 80,505 spectators, Referee Faghani (AUS)

Goals: 1–0 (66.) Mbappé, 2–0 (82.) Barcola, 2–1 (95.) Mbaye, 3–1 (96.) Mbappé

Yellow cards: none

France: Maignan – Koundé, Saliba, Upamecano, Hernández – Rabiot, Tchouameni – Olise, Dembélé (80. Barcola), Doué (87. Cherki) – Mbappé
Senegal: E. Mendy – Diatta, Koulibaly, Niakhate, E. Diouf – I. Gueye (88. Ciss), P. Gueye (83. Ndiaye) – I. Sarr (75. Mbaye), Camara (76. Diarra), Mane – Jackson (83. Dieng)