EAST RUTHERFORD, N,J. (AP) 鈥� France’s last World Cup match against Senegal set off dancing in the streets of Dakar.
Les Bleus were the defending champions when the Lions of Teranga’s 1-0 upset win in the 2002 opener caused Senegal President Abdoulaye Wade to declare a national holiday.
鈥淣ot for revenge do we want to win, but we want to go as far as possible in this competition,鈥� France midfielder N鈥橤olo Kant茅 said through a translator on Monday, a day before Les Bleus and Senegal meet in Group I.
Senegal was a French colony before 1960.
鈥淲e know that a game between France and Senegal is a very symbolic game,鈥� Senegal coach Pape Thiaw said through a translator.
Six of France’s players hadn’t been born at the time of the 2002 game, when Papa Bouba Diop scored in the 30th minute while lying on his side. The Lions of Teranga reached the quarterfinals that year before losing to Turkey, while France went winless and failed to advance from its group.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no revenge in football,鈥� France coach Didier Deschamps said through a translator. 鈥淭his will be another page to write now and what happened in 2002, well, all the best for Senegal. I mean it was good for them at the time but we鈥檒l make sure that the results be a positive for us this time.鈥�
France is a two-time champion seeking to reach its third straight World Cup final. Les Blues won in 1998 and , then on penalty kicks.
The French team is ranked third in the world, while Senegal is 16th.
鈥淥ur main opponent is ourselves,鈥� Kant茅 said. 鈥淲e cannot see ourselves too beautiful or too strong.”
Thiaw was picked for Senegal’s 2002 roster but played in only one game, the round of 16 win over Sweden. He will pass along lessons learned from the late Bruno Metsu, Senegal鈥檚 2002 coach.
鈥淥f course, there is going to be a Bruno effect when I鈥檓 going to be talking to my players tomorrow,鈥� Thiaw said. 鈥淚 will also add my personal touch and also add what Bruno taught me along the way.鈥�
Visa denial may not decrease Senegal supporters in stadium
Fans in Senegal were but Thiaw expects supporters to be inside MetLife Stadium.
鈥淥f course we鈥檇 like to have our fans. We know what they can do for us. They push us,鈥� Thiaw said. 鈥淏ut we have a major Senegalese community and we know that the Senegalese is very patriotic and they like their national team. You will see this tomorrow. You won鈥檛 even believe it that no Senegalese came over from Senegal.鈥�
Morocco, not Senegal, is African champion 鈥� for now
, then in this year鈥檚 final only to have the Atlas Lions by African soccer鈥檚 governing body because the Lions of Teranga left the field for 15 minutes during stoppage time in protest of a penalty kick awarded to their opponent.
to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
鈥淔or me we are champions of Africa, full stop,鈥� Thiaw said.
Didier Deschamps nears World Cup coaching record
Deschamps said in January he will in the same job. Tuesday’s match will be his 20th as a World Cup coach, five shy of Helmut Sch枚n’s record with West Germany.
He is one of only three men to win World Cup titles as a player and coach,
Heat not expected to be extreme in New Jersey
Tuesday’s game starts at 3 p.m. EDT and sunny weather is forecast but the temperature at kickoff is likely to be about 77 degrees Fahrenheit (25 degrees Celsius), down significantly from last weekend.
France practiced at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts, after arriving in the U.S. last Wednesday.
鈥淲e had to train in the heat, under the sun,” Kant茅 said, “and we saw also how tired we could be as a result.鈥�
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