Senegal to face Belgium in Round of 16 without key player

Senegal's goalkeeper, Edouard Mendy, will miss the team's World Cup knockout stage match against Belgium on Wednesday due to injury. Senegalese coach Pape Thiaw confirmed that the Al-Ahli goalkeeper will sit out his second consecutive World Cup game after sustaining a knee injury in Senegal's 3-2 group stage loss to Norway. Mendy has returned to his club in Saudi Arabia for further tests. The 34-year-old goalkeeper was absent from Tuesday's training session at Husky Football Stadium in Seattle, but Thiaw expects him to rejoin the squad. “He will be with us tomorrow, of course, even if he is not fit to play,” Thiaw said in French. “We hope he can stay with us until the end of the tournament.”

Since his debut in 2019, Mendy has made over 50 appearances for Senegal and started all four matches at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Senegal has two other goalkeepers in their squad. Mory Diaw, who plays for French club Le Havre, started against Iraq and also replaced Mendy against Norway. The 33-year-old goalkeeper made one save and kept a clean sheet in Senegal's 5-0 group stage victory over Iraq. “Mory performed great, he kept a clean sheet,” Thiaw said. “I think we hope that tomorrow's goalkeeper will also keep a clean sheet.”

Yevan Diouf, who also plays in the French top flight for Nice, is the other goalkeeper. The 26-year-old has two career caps for Senegal. Senegal qualified for the Round of 16 as one of the eight best third-placed teams. The team lost to France and Norway before defeating Iraq, finishing with three points and a positive goal difference. Belgium topped Group G with draws against Egypt and Iran and a 5-1 victory over New Zealand. The winner of Wednesday's match will remain in Seattle and face either the United States or Bosnia and Herzegovina on July 6.