The Senegalese national coach Aliou Cissé is disappointed by the lack of star player Sadio Mané. Still, he doesn’t want to give up. “We will miss him against the Netherlands, but have played without him before.” He speaks highly of Louis van Gaal: “He is an example for the whole world.”
At Senegal’s press conference on Sunday, the Bayern Munich star player is still the topic of conversation. Mané had to miss out due to an injury and that is important, Cissé acknowledges. “He is of great value to us and we will certainly miss him against the Netherlands. But we have played without him before. We have a team with many experienced players, supplemented with young talent. We are ready to take on the challenge go,” he says, fighting.
The Africa Cup winner also made an appearance in the final rounds of 2002 and 2018 and managed to win the first match at both tournaments, against France (1-0) and Poland (2-1) respectively. “It is extremely important to start well”, says Cissé, who played in the final round in 2002. “The experience we have and our status in Africa gives us a lot of confidence.”
At the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, tastemaker Senegal reached the quarter-finals, partly due to the contribution of top players El Hadji Diouf and Papa Bouba Diop. Four years ago in Russia, Senegal, then also led by Cissé, did not make it through the group stage. “We should not repeat the mistakes we made during the last World Cup. African football has developed enormously. Many of our players play in the major European leagues. The differences have become smaller.”
Cissé obviously knows the strength of the Dutch and has a lot of respect for colleague Van Gaal. “I don’t think I need to introduce him here anymore. He has a great track record. An example for the whole world. We know we have a good team against us.” Captain Kalidou Koulibaly sees the Netherlands as ‘one of the best teams in the world’. “We know that they are the big favorites and that we are the outsider for this game.”
Van Gaal, in turn, said he was a big fan of Mane. “I wanted to get him from Southampton when I was Manchester United’s coach. I am a fan of his. It is a great loss for Senegal that he is not participating, just as it is a loss that Memphis is not participating with us.”