West African giants Senegal have to cope with the tenacious COSAFA representative Zimbabwe in Group B opener of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations Cameroon 2021.
It will certainly be no walk in the park for the Teranga Lions, as they will have to earn their way past a motivated Warriors team.
The Bafoussam OmnisportKouekong Stadium will host the opening this highly anticipated Group B match on Monday.
Match Card
Date: 10 January 2022
Time: 14:00 local time (13:00 GMT)
Venue: Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam
Group: B
Match: Senegal v Zimbabwe
AFCON Record
The Teranga Lions missed out on gold in the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations in 2019 losing by a lone goal in the final to Algeria. Senegal also lost the 2002 final on penalties to Cameroon.
The Warriors have only made 5 appearances at the AFCON and have never made it past the Group stages. Zimbabwe will be hoping to defy all odds and man an appearance in the knockout stages.
Key Players
Led by Liverpool star Sadio Mane, Senegal will be hoping for a different outcome in Cameroon but first they have to negotiate past Zimbabwe in their opening fixture.
Coach Aliou Cisse team for the tournament in Cameroon is headlined by Premier League stars Edouard Mendy of Chelsea, Sadio Mane of Liverpool and Chiekhou Kouyate of Crystal Palace. Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye and Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly are also in the squad.
Zimbabwe coach Norman Mapeza named a severely weakened national team squad missing several key players.
Mapeza’s options have been severely limited following the retirement of South Africa-based star Khama Billiat, the absence of Tendayi Darikwa and injuries to Marshal Munetsi, Marvelous Nakamba and recently capped defender Brendan Galloway who were expected to form the spine of the AFCON squad.
Source: CAF