Senegal’s victory over Poland ends African drought
Continent’s team are a cumulative 1-5 in 2018 World Cup play
MOSCOW — Pele was unparalleled as a soccer player. But as a prognosticator? Not so much.
In fact, the three-time World Cup champion’s forecasts have been so laughably wrong, former Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari once advised, “If you want to win a title, you have to listen to Pele and then do the opposite.”
But there was one prediction Pele made that seemed so solid no one begged to differ. An African team, he said, soon would win the World Cup.
Nearly three decades later, we’re still waiting to find out which one.
Africa is off to another dismal start in this World Cup, with its first four teams to play losing before Senegal broke that streak Tuesday with a 2-1 win over Poland at Spartak Stadium.
“Senegal today represents the whole of the African continent,” coach Aliou Cisse said through a translator. “I get phone calls from everywhere. We’re also proud to represent Africa.”
Cisse, too, thought Africa would be further along by now. He was captain of the Senegalese team that beat defending champ France and advanced to the quarters of the 2002 tournament.
No African team has done better.
If anything, the continent has gone backward, its teams combining to win just 11 of 58 games since. Only four African teams have managed to get out of the group stage in the last three World Cups.
“There’s definitely been a decline,” Peter Odemwingie, who played in two World Cups
for Nigeria, told the BBC.
“Nigeria had one of the best African squads at the 1994 World Cup. We were knocking on the door. We won the 1996 Olympics by beating Brazil and Argentina with all their stars. “That period was like, ‘Yes, it’s coming.’ ” Now it seems as far off as ever. With Egypt’s loss to Russia late Tuesday ending its chances of reaching the knockout stage, Africa’s five teams — none ranked among the top 20 in the world — are a combined 1-5 in this World Cup.
RUSSIA 3, EGYPT 1: In St. Petersburg, Russia, the host team scored three goals in a 15-minute span early in the second half to set up a win and get to the brink of the World Cup’s knockout stage.
Mohamed Salah won and converted a penalty for a consolation goal on his return from injury but Egypt’s first World Cup in 28 years could be over in barely five days following a second straight loss.
JAPAN 2, COLOMBIA 1: In Saransk, Russia, Yuya Osako had a surprise in store for those who thought the absence of Shinji Okazaki left Japan little hope of competing with Colombia. He set up one goal and his 73rd-minute header from Keisuke Honda’s corner kick helped Japan become the latest side to pull off an upset in the tourney, joining Mexico, Switzerland and Iceland in earning surprising results.
Colombia midfielder Carlos Sanchez’s red card and third-minute dismissal isn’t the fastest in the tournament’s history. Still, Sanchez is second in the all-time list and his dismissal means there are now three players in the history of the World Cup who have been sent off inside the first 10 minutes.