Needing a win to guarantee its spot in the knockout stages, Senegal did just that, securing three points in a 2–1 victory over Ecuador to finish second in Group A.
A 2–0 win by the Netherlands over Qatar that was never in doubt from early on meant that the final knockout spot would come down to Ecuador and Senegal. While Senegal needed a win, or a draw and help from Qatar, La Tri simply needed a draw to advance after earning a point in its game against the Netherlands. But Senegal proved to be the better, more composed side in the Group A finale.
An Ismaïla Sarr goal from the penalty spot took the pressure off Senegal in the 44th minute. But Ecuador answered back in the second half behind a Moisés Caicedo goal in the 67th minute. Yet Senegal didn’t let it linger, scoring just 90 seconds later with Kalidou Koulibaly’s winner.
The Netherlands will now face the runner-up from Group B while Senegal will face the Group B winner.
Senegal got off to an energetic start with a flurry of chances in the first 10 minutes. In the third minute, fullback Ismail Jakobs sent a dangerous cross that slowly rolled across the box until it found Idrissa Gueye wide open in front of goal, but the Everton midfielder sent his shot just wide in a massive missed opportunity.
Minutes later, Boulaye Dia followed that chance with one of his own, taking a short pass into the box and squaring up the keeper before sending his shot just beyond the post.
In the 26th minute in the other Group A game between the Netherlands and Qatar, Cody Gakpo scored for the Oranje to give them a 1–0 lead. A Netherlands win would mean that Ecuador would go through to the knockouts with a win or a draw, while Senegal could go through only with a win.
Sarr earned a critical penalty in the 43rd minute with a perfect touch in the box before an Ecuador defender clattered into him. The Watford forward stepped to spot and calmly finished to give Senegal the 1–0 lead, a result that would have seen the side through to the knockouts.
In the 49th minute of Netherlands vs. Qatar, Frenkie de Jong doubled the Oranje’s lead with a goal, which all but guaranteed the Netherlands’s spot in the knockout stages.
In the 67th minute, Ecuador scored the equalizing goal behind Caicedo’s goal. At 1–1, a draw would have been enough to send La Tri through to the knockouts.
But just 90 seconds later, Koulibably leveled things for Senegal once again off a free kick as the Chelsea defender latched onto a pass across the box. It was the center back’s first goal for his country, and it came at one of its biggest moments.
The Group A standings finished with Netherlands atop the group on seven points, Senegal with six points, Ecuador with four points and Qatar on zero points.
Here were the lineups for both teams:
Full World Cup Squads
Ecuador
GOALKEEPERS: Alexander Domínguez (LDU Quito), Hernán Galíndez (Aucas), Moisés Ramirez (Independiente del Valle)
DEFENDERS: Robert Arboleda (São Paulo FC), Xavier Arreaga (Seattle Sounders), Pervis Estupiñán (Brighton), Piero Hincapié (Bayer Leverkusen), William Pacho (Antwerp), Diego Palacios (LAFC), Jackson Porozo (Troyes), Ángelo Preciado (Genk), Félix Torres (Santos Laguna)
MIDFIELDERS: Moisés Caicedo (Brighton), José Cifuentes (LAFC), Alan Franco (Talleres), Carlos Gruezo (Augsburg), Romario Ibarra (Pachuca), Ángel Mena (Leon), Jhegson Méndez (LAFC), Gonzalo Plata (Real Valladolid), Ayrton Preciado (Santos Laguna), Jeremy Sarmiento (Brighton)
FORWARDS: Michael Estrada (Cruz Azul), Djorkaeff Reasco (Newell’s Old Boys), Kevin Rodríguez (Imbabura), Enner Valencia (Fenerbahçe)
COACH: Gustavo Alfaro
Senegal
GOALKEEPERS: Seny Dieng (Queens Park Rangers), Alfred Gomis (Rennes), Édouard Mendy (Chelsea)
DEFENDERS: Fodé Ballo-Touré (AC Milan), Pape Abou Cissé (Olympiacos), Abdou Diallo (Leipzig), Ismail Jakobs (Monaco), Kalidou Koulibaly (Chelsea), Formose Mendy (Amiens), Moussa N'Diaye (Anderlecht), Youssouf Sabaly (Real Betis)
MIDFIELDERS: Pathé Ciss (Rayo Vallecano), Krepin Diatta (Monaco), Idrissa Gueye (Everton), Pape Gueye (Marseille), Cheikhou Kouyaté (Nottingham Forest), Mamadou Loum (Reading), Nampalys Mendy (Leicester), Moustapha Name (Pafos), Pape Matar Sarr (Tottenham)
FORWARDS: Boulaye Dia (Salernitana), Famara Diedhiou (Alanyaspor), Bamba Dieng (Marseille), Nicolas Jackson (Villarreal), Iliman Ndiaye (Sheffield United), Ismaïla Sarr (Watford)
