Senegal face Ecuador in likely Group A knock-out

Ecuador will qualify for the final 16 in the event that they keep away from defeat, whereas Senegal are more likely to want a win to progress.

Who: Senegal vs Ecuador, Group A

The place: Khalifa Worldwide Stadium in Doha, Qatar

When: Tuesday, November 29, at 6pm (15:00 GMT)

FIFA rating: Senegal (18), Ecuador (44)

Ecuador coach Gustavo Alfaro has referred to as on his gamers to ship the “finest World Cup” within the nation’s historical past as they chase qualification for the knockout section towards Senegal on Tuesday.

The South American aspect will seal their place within the final 16 in the event that they handle to keep away from defeat towards the African champions within the closing spherical of Group A fixtures after beating Qatar 2-0 within the event’s opening match and outplaying the Dutch on Friday in a 1-1 draw.

Development out of the group would match Ecuador’s all-time finest World Cup exhibiting in 2006, once they made it to the knockout section for the primary time ever earlier than exiting to England.

“I’m satisfied we’ve performed the whole lot we will, we’ve performed our homework, hopefully tomorrow we might be sturdy and lucky sufficient towards Senegal, who’re an excellent group, and hopefully we’ll undergo, as a result of we deserve it,” Alfaro informed reporters on Monday.

Alfaro mentioned his group ought to anticipate their hardest recreation but towards Senegal, who’re ranked 26 locations above them.

“We respect the pecking order, however we don’t must be fearful. We stay calm however that doesn’t imply we’re overconfident, we aren’t triumphalist,” he mentioned.

“We’ve our personal approach of enjoying, we aren’t simply considering of getting a draw. We’ve to return to the pitch making an attempt to win the sport … We’re creating our personal pathway. We need to progress, we need to seal our passage, we need to play the very best World Cup in Ecuadorean historical past.”

Nevertheless, one space of concern for the South People is the health of captain Enner Valencia after he was carried off late within the Netherlands draw with a recurrence of a knee pressure. The 33-year-old ahead has scored all three of Ecuador’s targets in Qatar, including to the three he bagged in Brazil in 2014.

African champions ‘coping with the strain’

Senegal, for his or her half, will virtually definitely have to beat Ecuador on the Khalifa Worldwide Stadium to qualify for the final 16.

Coach Aliou Cisse’s aspect misplaced 2-0 to the Dutch earlier than beating Qatar 3-1 on Friday to maintain their hopes of advancing alive.

They might theoretically stay in competition for the knockout section with a draw, however that end result can be contingent on hosts Qatar registering a extremely unlikely victory over the Netherlands, who sit joint-top of Group A with Ecuador.

Cisse mentioned on Monday that his aspect is anticipated to qualify from the group resulting from their standing as the very best aspect in Africa, however added his gamers had been adapting to the strain nicely.

Having reached the quarter-finals on their World Cup debut in 2002, Senegal had been eradicated within the group stage on truthful play factors 4 years in the past in Russia.

“I come from a rustic the place we don’t like dropping … we’re at all times hungry for that win [and] not going to the spherical of 16 can be tough to digest,” Cisse informed reporters. “We’re okay, we’re coping with the strain and stress. For me, it’s good stress.”