BY KUNLE SOLAJA

What a load of rubbish. There is no polite way to describe what Senegal did in Seattle on Wednesday night.

Not when a team is leading 2-0 with four minutes left in regulation time. Not when that team has dominated one of Europe’s traditional powers for almost the entire match. Not when a place in the Round of 16 is virtually secured.

And certainly not when that same team somehow manages to lose 3-2. This was not merely a defeat. It was a sporting catastrophe.

It was a collapse so spectacular that future generations of Senegalese football fans will speak about it with disbelief. Coaches will use it as a warning. Opponents will use it as proof that no game is won until the final whistle.

For 86 minutes, Senegal were magnificent.

They were organised, energetic and tactically superior. Belgium looked exhausted, uninspired and on the verge of elimination. Habib Diarra’s first-half goal was deserved. Ismaila Sarr’s brilliant second-half strike should have buried the contest.

At 2-0, the match was over. Or at least it should have been.

What followed was a footballing meltdown that bordered on the absurd.

The moment Romelu Lukaku pulled one back in the 86th minute, alarm bells should have been ringing across the Senegal bench. The instruction should have been simple: close the game, keep possession, defend intelligently, waste a little time if necessary, and get over the line.

Instead, panic took over.

The composure that had defined Senegal’s performance disappeared. The discipline vanished. Players who had looked assured suddenly looked frightened.

Belgium sensed weakness and attacked.

Within minutes, Youri Tielemans headed home the equaliser.

Even then, Senegal still had extra time to regroup, reorganise and rescue themselves. They did neither.

Instead, they pulled out their most talismanic player, Sadio Mane.

The final insult arrived in the 125th minute when Lamine Camara lunged recklessly into Tielemans inside the penalty area. It was the kind of challenge born not from confidence but from desperation.

VAR confirmed what everyone suspected.

Penalty.

Game over.

World Cup over.

Dream over.

Tielemans converted and Belgium completed one of the greatest escapes in World Cup history.

The painful truth for Senegal is that Belgium did not win this match as much as Senegal handed it to them.

Yes, Belgium showed character.

Yes, Lukaku’s introduction changed the game.

Yes, the Belgians deserve credit for refusing to surrender.

But none of that explains how a team leading 2-0 with only minutes remaining can lose.

The answer lies in game management — or the complete lack of it.

The world’s best teams know how to kill a match. They know when to slow the pace. They know when to keep the ball in the corners. They know when to commit a tactical foul, when to make substitutions, when to frustrate an opponent and when to simply clear their lines.

Senegal did none of those things.

Instead, they gifted Belgium hope.

And hope is the most dangerous thing you can give a wounded giant.

Coach Pape Thiaw said afterwards that his team deserved to win.

Perhaps they did.

But football is not decided on merit alone.

It is decided by concentration.

It is decided by discipline.

It is decided by the ability to finish what you start.

Senegal failed that test spectacularly.

For African football, the defeat is particularly painful because this Senegal side had shown throughout the tournament that it possessed the quality to go deep into the competition. They had the talent, the experience and the momentum.

What they lacked when it mattered most was maturity.

The scoreboard does not record how well you played for 86 minutes.

It records what happened after 120.

And what happened after 120 minutes was a disaster.

Belgium walked away with a place in the next round.

Senegal walked away with regret.

The tragedy is that they were not beaten by Belgium.

They were beaten by themselves. For Africa, another great team has crashed out of the World Cup!

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BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

For 68 minutes, England stared nervously at the possibility of becoming the first African scalp of their FIFA World Cup campaign. For 68 minutes, the Democratic Republic of Congo dared to dream.

Then Harry Kane arrived.

Just as Gary Lineker had done exactly 36 years earlier against Cameroon on July 1, 1990, England’s captain dragged his team from the brink, scoring twice as the Three Lions recovered from a goal down to defeat DR Congo 2-1 and book their place in the Round of 16.

History seemed to be repeating itself. On that famous summer evening in Naples at Italia ’90, Lineker rescued England with two goals against Cameroon. On another July 1, against another African opponent, Kane delivered his own decisive intervention, ensuring England’s unbeaten World Cup record against African nations remained intact.

The contest at the packed stadium had begun stunningly for the Congolese.

Only seven minutes had elapsed when Brian Cipenga silenced the sea of England supporters. Left unmarked on the right side of the penalty area, the winger took a touch before drilling a low shot beyond Jordan Pickford at his near post. The DR Congo bench erupted, while thousands of travelling supporters celebrated wildly in the stands.

The joy before the heartbreak. DR Congo’s Brian Cipenga celebrates with teammate Yoane Wissa after scoring the opening goal against England in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Round-of-32 clash at Atlanta Stadium, Georgia, on July 1. The Congolese side led for much of the match before England fought back to win 2-1 through a Harry Kane brace. Photo: Reuters/Bernadett Szabo.

Suddenly, England looked vulnerable.

The African side played with confidence and belief, refusing to be intimidated by their illustrious opponents. Every tackle was cheered, every interception celebrated. The Leopards sensed an opportunity to write one of the great World Cup stories.

England, meanwhile, became increasingly frustrated.

Jude Bellingham came close, only to be denied by an outstanding save from goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi. Kane also found the Congolese shot-stopper in inspired form, while Marcus Rashford thought he had an opening before Aaron Wan-Bissaka produced a heroic block to preserve the lead.

As halftime approached, DR Congo nearly delivered a devastating second blow. Yoane Wissa found himself with the goal at his mercy from inside the six-yard box, but his effort crashed against the post, drawing gasps from every corner of the stadium.

Had that gone in, England’s World Cup dream might have been in serious jeopardy.

Instead, the Europeans survived and gradually increased the pressure after the break.

The Congolese defence continued to resist bravely, but the warning signs were growing. England’s attacks became more frequent, their crosses more dangerous, and their captain more influential.

The breakthrough finally arrived in the 75th minute.

Kane, who had been searching tirelessly for an opening all evening, pounced to bring England level. The goal transformed the atmosphere instantly. Relief swept through the England ranks, while DR Congo suddenly found themselves defending deeper than at any stage of the match.

The underdogs fought courageously, but the momentum had shifted.

With extra time looming and the Congolese supporters dreaming of another heroic defensive stand, England struck the decisive blow.

Four minutes from time, Anthony Gordon delivered a teasing cross into the penalty area. Kane escaped his marker with a clever turn and powered a header beyond Mpasi, sending England’s fans into raptures.

The captain sprinted away in celebration as teammates swarmed around him. Across the pitch, exhausted Congolese players dropped to the turf, their magnificent resistance finally broken.

At the final whistle, England had survived one of their sternest examinations of the tournament.

For DR Congo, there was heartbreak but also immense pride. The African side had pushed one of football’s traditional giants to the limit and came within touching distance of a famous upset.

For England, the reward is a Round-of-16 showdown with Mexico at the legendary Azteca Stadium on Sunday.

And once again, when England needed a hero on the World Cup stage, their captain answered the call.

Just as Lineker did in 1990, Harry Kane ensured that July 1 would remain a date etched in England’s World Cup folklore.

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BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Friendships will be temporarily put aside when the United States take on Bosnia and Herzegovina in their FIFA World Cup Round of 32 showdown.

The match will feature an interesting subplot involving players who regularly share a dressing room at German Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach.

American duo Giovanni Reyna and Joe Scally will line up against club teammate Haris Tabaković, who is expected to spearhead Bosnia and Herzegovina’s attack in the knockout encounter.

While the trio are accustomed to working together at club level, national pride will take precedence as both sides chase a place in the last 16.

The United States arrive with confidence after navigating a challenging group stage and will be hoping to capitalise on home-continent support. Bosnia and Herzegovina, meanwhile, have emerged as one of the tournament’s surprise packages and will be eager to extend their memorable World Cup journey.

The reunion of club colleagues adds an extra layer of intrigue to a fixture that could be decided by the finest of margins.

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