Senegal will face off with Tunisia in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations semi-final clash at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo on Sunday.
Kick Off is at 18:00hrs CAT.
Senegal, who are the highest ranked African nation in football, have been excellent in the competition with four wins in four matches, and they will be looking to reach their first Nations Cup final since 2002.
The Teranga Lions booked their place in the semi-finals after a 1-0 win over Benin. Idrissa Gueye’s 69th-minute effort proved to be the difference for the Teranga Lions, who also had two goals ruled out for offside.
Overall, Senegal and Tunisia have met 21 times with Tunisia being the overall victors, winning nine times and losing four games, with seven ending up in draws.
With a solid defence, the Teranga Lions are poised to win the clash, as they have only conceded once in five games. The record will definitely give the side confidence of shutting a Carthage Eagles attacking line which has not been at its best.
Since this will be Senegal’s first semi-final appearance in the last 13 years, coach Cisse has predicted a tough encounter against their opponents, who are ranked second in Africa.
‘‘We are now close to our goal at this competition, but before it, we will face a difficult match against Tunisia,” Senegal coach Aliou Cisse said ahead of the match.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] ‘‘Tunisian football has evolved, it’s true that we beat them in 2017, but this is a different game.” [/perfectpullquote]
Sadio Mane will be leading Senegal’s attack in the hunt of goals alongside Keita Balde and Ismaila Sarr, who are also having a good tournament.
Meanwhile, Tunisia have been inconsistent in this edition of the AFCON, as they managed a second place finish in Group E, having played three draws in matches against Mali, Angola and Mauritania.
The Carthage Eagles progressed to the semis thanks to a 3-0 victory over debutants Madagascar in the last eight. Second half goals from Ferjani Sassi and Youssef Msakni put the North Africans in control of the clash before Naim Sliti completed the rout on the stroke of 90 minutes.
The Tunisians had to wait for the fateful shootout against Ghana to clinch their ticket to the quarter-finals of the Egypt 2019 tournament.
In an interview with the press, coach Allain Girresse believes that his side is now ripe to win the trophy.
“We did everything to qualify and we’re happy with everything,” said Giresse.
“I won’t answer any criticism, we’re in the semi-final. It’s not constructive. Senegal are a strong team and they’re different from any other team. They have Sadio Mane, whom I predicted a great future for before. But, we’ll be ready.”
Ferjani Ssasi, who scored a goal against Madagascar, will be the man to watch on the Tunisian side. He is expected to team up with the likes of Wahbi Khazri and Taha Yassine Khenissi.
At the previous Africa Cup of Nations, Tunisia and Senegal have met five times and have each won a game in those fixtures. The other three games ended in draws.
The Carthage Eagles can count on the support of their fans since four charter flights have arrived in Cairo full of fans who are willing to lend a hand to their national team.
