France vs. Senegal: Three reasons why Lions of Teranga can repeat 2002 World Cup shock in Group K

For the second time this millennium, Senegal manager Pape Thiaw could witness a seismic World Cup shock from the dugout, at the expense of a heavily-favoured France outfit.

The current Lions of Teranga head coach was an unused substitute when Senegal stunned Les Bleus 1-0 during the 2002 group stage, which France entered as the defending champions but ended up suffering the most humiliating of early exits.

Twenty-four years later, Didier Deschamps prepares for a last World Cup dance as France boss, and his fear-inducing crop are unsurprisingly among the principal contenders to conquer the globe before he hands the reins over to Zinedine Zidane.

But is history at risk of repeating itself for the 2018 champions? Here, Sports Mole explores three reasons why Senegal could make Mundial lightning strike twice and repeat their 2002 heroics in Tuesday's Group K game.

Why Senegal can stun France: Didier Deschamps's defensive concerns

Pinpointing a specific weakness in this France crop might be too tall an order for some, but it is fair to say that Deschamps's defence does not carry the same gravitas as the Kylian Mbappe and Michael Olise-inspired attacking force.

Les Bleus are certainly not short of standout names in defence - William Saliba, Jules Kounde and Dayot Upamecano among them - but they have conceded at least one goal in each of their last five games against Northern Ireland, Ivory Coast, Colombia, Brazil and Azerbaijan.

The 2022 runners-up also shipped three goals across two fixtures with Iceland during the Qualifying process, and Deschamps has had to deal with fitness concerns surrounding Saliba and Kounde in the lead-up to Wednesday's game.

Neither man is expected to sit this one out, but there are fears that Saliba might have to undergo surgery once the World Cup concludes, so the Arsenal man may not be operating at 100% throughout.

Why Senegal can stun France: Embarrassment of attacking riches

Much has been made of the ferocious firepower at Deschamps's disposal - and rightly so - but overlooking the Senegal attack would be an act of folly, as veterans and primers alike have been shining at club and international level of late.

The Lions of Teranga did draw their final warm-up friendly 0-0 with Saudi Arabia, but Thiaw's men had scored in 17 consecutive games prior to that, including multiple efforts against the USA, Gambia and Peru.

Star man Sadio Mane comes into the tournament having registered 23 combined goals and assists for Saudi Pro League winners Al-Nassr last season, while Ismaila Sarr struck 21 times for Conference League champions Crystal Palace.

The much-maligned Nicolas Jackson also amassed a respectable 15 involvements for Bayern Munich, Bamba Dieng netted 16 times for Lorient, and Iliman Ndiaye earned links with Liverpool and Manchester United thanks to nine direct Premier League contributions in an Everton kit.

Why Senegal can stun France: The African curse

Past results can rarely be earmarked as a strong indicator of future outcomes, but France have traditionally struggled to get the better of African teams in group-stage games this side of the millennium.

Including the 1-0 reverse to Senegal in 2002, Les Bleus have been defeated in three of their last four World Cup group-stage matches against CAF representatives, most recently to Tunisia in Qatar.

Deschamps oversaw a 1-0 loss to the Eagles of Carthage - a shock result even if Les Bleus did make changes with qualification already secured - and the 2018 winners were also upset 2-1 by South Africa in 2010.

Furthermore, with a manager who can say 'I was there' when Senegal beat France 24 years ago, the Lions of Teranga have all the know-how needed to prolong Les Bleus' blues in this battle.