World Cup
Mane headlines tried and trusted Senegal squad for World Cup
Senegal’s Sadio Mane is a key selection in the 28-man World Cup squad named by coach Pape Thiaw on Thursday as the influential forward looks to make up for lost time, having missed the finals four years ago in Qatar through injury.
Thiaw will have to trim his squad by two players ahead of the final deadline towards the end of this month.
Mane remains a leading player for a star-studded Senegal lineup that looks to be the most potent of the 10 African qualifiers for the finals in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, with a blend of experience and youthful athleticism in the squad.
The 34-year-old Al-Nassr player is likely to lead the line, but also selected are Bayern Munich forward Nicolas Jackson, plus Everton’s Iliman Ndiaye and Crystal Palace winger Ismaila Sarr.
Bayern’s 18-year-old midfielder Bara Ndiaye has also been called up, but there is no place for Malang Sarr, who has excelled this season with Lens.
Idrissa Gueye, also of Everton, has been included despite missing the tail-end of the season through injury, with Sunderland’s Habib Diarra and Tottenham Hotspur’s Pape Matar Sarr also midfield options.
Experienced centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly has been picked along with goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
Senegal were the best team at the recent Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco and edged the hosts 1-0 in a contentious final that was later awarded to the North Africans, a matter that is before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Senegal have been drawn in Group I at the World Cup and open their campaign against France on June 16 in New Jersey in a repeat of their famous 2002 World Cup meeting in which the African side came out on top against the then-holders.
They also take on Norway at the same venue (June 22) and Iraq in Toronto (June 26) in their section.
Senegal reached the World Cup quarter-finals in 2002, their best showing to date, before losing to Turkey. For several of their so-called ‘Golden Generation’ of players, including Mane, this will likely be their last chance to improve on that.
They went out in the group stage following a drawing of lots in 2018 and in the round of 16 four years ago.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Edouard Mendy (Al-Ahli), Yehvann Diouf (Nice), Mory Diaw (Le Havre)
Defenders: Krepin Diatta (Monaco), Antoine Mendy (Nice), Abdoulaye Seck (Maccabi Haifa), Kalidou Koulibaly (Al-Hilal), Ilay Camara (Anderlecht), Moussa Niakhate (Lyon), Mamadou Sarr (Chelsea), El-Hadji Malick Diouf (West Ham United), Moustapha Mbow (Paris FC), Ismail Jakobs (Galatasaray)
Midfielders: Idrissa Gueye (Everton), Habib Diarra (Sunderland), Pape Matar Sarr (Tottenham), Pape Gueye (Villarreal), Lamine Camara (Monaco), Pathe Ciss (Rayo Vallecano), Bara Ndiaye (Bayern Munich)
Forwards: Sadio Mane (Al-Nassr), Bamba Dieng (Lorient), Iliman Ndiaye (Everton), Nicolas Jackson (Bayern Munich), Assane Diao (Como), Ibrahim Mbaye (Paris St-Germain), Cherif Ndiaye (Samsunspor), Ismaila Sarr (Crystal Palace).
-Reuters
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Uncapped Hamburg SV goalkeeper Sander Tangvik has won the race for Norway’s final World Cup spot, following a selection headache that required a final sign-off from King Harald on Thursday.
Otherwise, there were few surprises as Norway will be led by captain Martin Odegaard, fresh from a Premier League title victory with Arsenal, and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland.
Tangvik was named in Stale Solbakken’s 26-man squad alongside veteran Orjan Haskjold Nyland and Egil Selvik after intense media speculation surrounding the group of shot-stoppers, following a unique squad announcement delivered by the Norwegian monarch via a pre-recorded video.
The 23-year-old’s inclusion caps off a chaotic goalkeeper selection process triggered by an injury to SK Brann’s Mathias Dyngeland and FIFA’s rejection of Bodo/Glimt keeper Nikita Haikin’s nationality switch, leaving Tangvik as the only uncapped player in the squad.
Midfield and attacking options were boosted by the inclusions of Jens Petter Hauge and Thelo Aasgaard. Their selections came at the expense of high-profile omissions, including Toulouse winger Aron Donnum and Brann’s Felix Horn Myhre, both of whom missed out on the final tournament squad despite participating in the qualifying campaign.
Defensive depth was reinforced by the selections of Sondre Langas and Henrik Falchener, who join stalwarts Kristoffer Ajer, Torbjorn Heggem, and Leo Skiri Ostigard.
“I didn’t trust it until the video was finished. I didn’t trust the King for a second,” Langas told national broadcaster NRK.
Norway are in World Cup Group I along with France, Senegal and Iraq, in what has been labelled the tournament’s “group of death”.
Norway squad:
Goalkeepers: Orjan Haskjold Nyland (Sevilla), Egil Selvik (Watford), Sander Tangvik (Hamburger SV)
Defenders: Julian Ryerson (Borussia Dortmund), Marcus Holmgren Pedersen (Torino), David Moller Wolfe (Wolverhampton), Fredrik Bjorkan (Bodo/Glimt), Kristoffer Ajer (Brentford), Torbjorn Heggem (Bologna), Leo Skiri Ostigard (Genoa), Sondre Langas (Derby County), Henrik Falchener (Viking)
Midfielders: Martin Odegaard (Arsenal), Sander Berge (Fulham), Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica), Patrick Berg (Bodo/Glimt), Kristian Thorstvedt (Sassuolo), Morten Thorsby (Cremonese), Thelo Aasgaard (Rangers)
Forwards: Erling Haaland (Manchester City), Alexander Sorloth (Atletico Madrid), Jorgen Strand Larsen (Crystal Palace), Antonio Nusa (RB Leipzig), Oscar Bobb (Fulham), Andreas Schjelderup (Benfica), Jens Petter Hauge (Bodo/Glimt).
-Reuters
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Nantes forward Mostafa Mohamed has been left out of Egypt’s preliminary squad for next month’s World Cup, but uncapped teenager Hamza Abdelkarim, who plays for the Barcelona under-19 team, was included.
Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah will captain the squad and combine with Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush to lead the attack at the World Cup, which runs from June 11 to July 19 in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Coach Hossam Hassan will drop one player to reduce the squad to the FIFA-mandated 26 players after Egypt take on Russia in Cairo on May 28 in their last home friendly before heading to the United States.
Mohamed was a surprise omission, even if he has struggled for form with only four goals in 24 matches this season for Nantes as the French club were relegated from Ligue 1.
Abdelkarim, by contrast, has been in great form for the Barcelona youth team and is one of the most promising forward talents in Egyptian football.
Egypt will play Brazil in a friendly in Cleveland on June 6 before opening their World Cup campaign against Belgium in Seattle nine days later.
They then face New Zealand in Vancouver on June 21 before returning to Seattle five days later to round out their Group G matches against Iran.
Egypt squad:
Goalkeepers: Mohamed El Shenawy (Al Ahly), Mostafa Shobeir (Al Ahly), El Mahdi Soliman (Zamalek), Mohamed Alaa (El Gouna)
Defenders: Mohamed Hany (Al Ahly), Tarek Alaa (Zed), Hamdy Fathy (Al Wakrah), Rami Rabia (Al Ain), Yasser Ibrahim (Al Ahly), Hossam Abdelmaguid (Zamalek), Mohamed Abdelmonemn (Nice), Ahmed Fatouh (Zamalek), Karim Hafez (Pyramids)
Midfielders: Marwan Ateya (Al Ahly), Mohanad Lasheen (Pyramids), Nabil Emad (Al Najma), Mahmoud Saber (Zed), Ahmed Zizo (Al Ahly), Emam Ashour (Al Ahly), Mostafa Ziko (Pyramids), Mahmoud Trezeguet (Al Ahly), Ibrahim Adel (Nordsjaelland), Haissem Hassan (Real Ovideo)
Forwards: Omar Marmoush (Manchester City), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Aqtay Abdallah (Enppi), Hamza Abdelkarim (Barcelona U19).
-Reuters
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The Democratic Republic of Congo have been forced to change their World Cup squad two days after announcing it, as Rocky Bushiri has been ruled out due to injury and replaced by another Scottish-based player, Aaron Tshibola.
Coach Sebastien Desabre named his 26-player squad on Monday, but has withdrawn Hibernian centre back Bushiri. Kilmarnock defensive midfielder Tshibola has been called up.
“The Congolese Football Federation Association confirms the withdrawal of Rocky Bushiri from the 2026 World Cup, following an injury sustained during his last match with his club,” the Congolese Association Football Federation said in a statement.
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