England and Senegal square off in the Round of 16 of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The Three Lions are massive favorites and are among the top contenders for winning the title and returning the trophy home after 56 years. Meanwhile, Senegal fought bravely, despite not having its best players and one of the biggest stars in today’s football, Sadio Mane, who is injured. The Lions of Teranga earned their place in the knockout fair and square, beating Ecuador in the direct matchup for second place.
Preview
England (-195) was extremely confident in the Group stage, scoring nine goals and collecting seven points. Following an opening win over Iran, 6-2, and a goalless tie against the American unit, they would beat Wales, 3-0, routinely cruising into the knockout stage.
Against the Dragons, we saw non-starters leading the way, with Foden and Rashford breaking the rivals’ defense and creating many problems. It only shows how deep is the English offense and that Southgate has enough options to attack any team in the world.
Overall, England played well, though we need to say that they weren’t tested throughout the group stage. The game against Senegal will be the first big challenge for the Three Lions, who now have to show their best.
Senegal (+650) is in an excellent position before this matchup. Unlike their rivals, who are under heavy pressure to win this game and the entire tournament. On the other side, Senegal has no pressure at all because nobody expects anything.
After losing to the Netherlands, 0-2, Senegal rose to the occasion, beating Qatar at first 1-3, and after that, Ecuador in a direct clash for the knockout stage, 1-2. Let us remind you that Senegal needed to win, while a draw suited to El Tri.
The Lions of Teranga play strong football, brave and often a bit reckless, but not as often as before. Senegal is very dangerous in counter-attacks as well as in set pieces.
Latest News
The media in England states that the entire team is ready for this game. There aren’t any injured players, and it is expected to see the Three Lions starting the event with the same lineup as against Iran.
On the other side, Senegal is ready to play, and they are free from any injuries, but Idrissa Gueye is suspended due to two yellow cards in the group stage.
Head to Head Games
We didn’t find any previous meetings between these two countries, nor a competitive or friendly one.
Prediction
England isn’t very good in situations when they need to dictate the tempo and attack, and we are sure that the Senegalese head coach knows that. Their win over Iran came because of several circumstances that went in their favor; against the US side, they didn’t show anything, and beating Wales was mostly due to the Dragons’ fallout in the second half. We don’t think that England won’t win here, but it is much safer to bet on low efficiency, that is, under 2.5 goals. Both teams will be extra careful. The odds on that are -160.
Pick: Under 2.5 goals -160
Check out for our other World Cup Round of 16 previews:
Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
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Email: nikola@wagerbop.com
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