BLOW FOR SENEGAL, MANE RULED OUT

Senegal star Sadio Mane has lost his race to be fit for the 2022 World Cup and has been withdrawn from their squad, the country’s football federation announced on Thursday. Mane was voted second in the Ballon d’or last month behind Karim Benzema and the 30-year-old Bayern Munich forward will be sorely missed by the African champions. The emblematic Mane scored the winning penalty in a shootout victory against Egypt in the African Cup of Nations final and repeated the feat against the same opponents to qualify the Lions of Teranga for the World Cup.