Togo and Senegal return to action in Group B of the 2026 World Cup when they go head to head at the Stade de Kegue on Tuesday evening.
The two nations head into the game off the back of contrasting opening-day results, with the Lions of Teranga cruising to an emphatic victory over South Sudan in Diamniadio.
Match preview
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The Sparrowhawks of Togo failed to make it four wins on the bounce across all competitions as they could only salvage a 1-1 draw against Sudan in their Group B opener last Thursday.
In a cagey affair at the Martyrs of February Stadium, Milton Keynes Dons man Mohamed Eisa opened the scoring from the penalty in the 17th-minute penalty to put the Secretarybirds ahead but Kevin Denkey restored parity shortly before the half-time break.
Prior to that, Togo edged out Lesotho 2-0 in a friendly fixture on June 14 to end their four-game winless run before claiming successive victories over Eswatini and Cape Verde in their final two games of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Despite their strong finish to the AFCON qualifiers, Paulo Duarte's men failed to book their spot in Ivory Coast as they finished third in Group B after picking up eight points from their six matches.
Togo, whose last AFCON appearance came in 2018, now return home where they are unbeaten in their last five matches, claiming four draws and one win since a 1-0 loss to Namibia in the World Cup qualifiers back in September 2021.
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Senegal, on the other hand, could not have hoped for a better start to their quest for a place in the 2026 World Cup as they cruised to a 4-0 victory over South Sudan on Saturday.
In a one-sided affair at the Stade Me Abdoulaye Wade, goals from Pape Matar Sarr, Lamine Camara and a brace from former Liverpool man Sadio Mane saw the hosts comfortably claim all three points.
Senegal have now gone nine straight competitive games without defeat, claiming one draw and seven wins, including a penalty-shootout victory over two-time African champions Algeria to claim a first-ever AFCON title in February.
While Tuesday's hosts are seeking a first World Cup appearance since 2006, Aliou Cisse's men, who are currently 20th in the latest FIFA World Rankings and second in Africa, are aiming to reach a third consecutive World Cup, having featured in 2018 and 2022.
The Lions of Teranga suffered a group-stage exit in 2018, when they picked up four points from three matches to finish third in Group H, but went one step further in Qatar last year, reaching the quarter-finals before losing 3-0 to England.
With the 2023 AFCON just around the corner, Senegal will fancy their chances of closing the year on a high as they take on an opposing side who have failed to win any of their last three encounters since January 2005.
Team News
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With his leveller against Sudan, Denkey now has 14 goals for club and country this season and we expect the Cercle Brugge striker to spearhead Togo's attack once again.
Roger Aholou, Karim Dermane and Khaled Narey should form the midfield trio once again, while the duo of Loic Bessile and Getafe man Djene should form the centre-back pairing.
Following his side's dominant opening-day victory, Cisse could name a similar starting side on Tuesday, with Krepin Diatta, Kalidou Koulibaly, Moussa Niakhate and Ismail Jakobs forming the back four shielding Edouard Mendy between the sticks
Sarr grabbed his maiden goal for the Lions of Teranga on Saturday and should retain his role at the centre of the park, alongside Camara and Everton's Idrissa Gueye.
Following his brace against South Sudan, Mane now has 40 international goals and the Al-Nassr forward, who currently sits at the top of the nation's all-time scoring chart, will be one to keep an eye on.
Togo possible starting lineup:
Mensah; Amouzou, Bessile, Djene, Romao; Aholou, Dermane, Narey; Bebou, Placca, Denkey
Senegal possible starting lineup:
Mendy; Diatta, Koulibaly, Niakhate, Jakobs; Sarr, Gueye, Camara; Ndiaye, Diallo, Mane
We say: Togo 0-3 Senegal
Following their impressive victory over South Sudan, Senegal will head into Tuesday's game with sky-high confidence. While we Togo put up a fight, the Lions of Teranga boast a significantly superior and more experienced squad and we are backing them to claim all three points.
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