SENEGAL delivered a dominant display to sweep aside Iraq, with Abdoulaye Seck’s early opener setting the tone before Ismaïla Sarr, Pape Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye took control after the break, reports Olivia Clark.
The Lions of Teranga made the perfect start as Seck struck in the fourth minute to improve their negative goal difference. The opener came from a corner, demonstrating Senegal’s threat from set pieces while exposing Iraq’s defensive weakness. Graham Arnold’s side showed flashes of promise as they drove forward with intent, but Senegal stood firm.
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Iraq were then reduced to ten men when Rebin Sulaka was sent off for bringing down Sadio Mané just outside the box. Anthony Taylor initially showed yellow but upgraded the decision to red after review – marking the ninth red card of the tournament. Taylor continued to stamp his authority on the game, later booking Seck for a poor foul as Iraq searched for a way back into the match.
The men in green were handed a chance from the resulting free kick, but the strike hit the wall before the follow-up flew off target.
Iraq were dealt another concern when goalkeeper Ahmed Basil went down after colliding with one of his own teammates, adding to an already disrupted opening period.
The stop-start nature of the game was reflected in the nine minutes of added time, as Senegal tried to maintain control while the ten men looked to survive a difficult spell. Iraq made a change at the break, replacing their injured goalkeeper with Jalal Hassan.
The west African side quickly picked up where they left off. Habib Diarra went close early in the second half before a quick-fire double put the game beyond Iraq.
Ismaïla Sarr doubled the lead in the 56th minute from Lamine Camara’s delivery, before turning provider three minutes later for Pape Gueye to add a third. In doing so, Sarr became the first Senegalese player to score and assist in the same World Cup match.
Gueye was not finished there, adding his second of the match in the 72nd minute as Senegal continued to punish their opponents. Iliman Ndiaye then completed the scoring ten minutes later, firing in a powerful strike from outside the box to seal a 5-0 win.
The impressive result puts Senegal on course for a last-32 meeting with England on Wednesday, unless the picture changes at the top of Group L.
For Iraq, the heavy loss confirms their departure from the tournament.
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