Senegal secured a dominant 5-0 victory over 10-man Iraq in their final Group I fixture on Friday, keeping their hopes of reaching the FIFA World Cup Round of 32 alive while eliminating Iraq without a point.
Needing a victory to stay in contention for one of the tournament’s best third-placed spots, Senegal eventually turned their numerical advantage into a commanding win after Iraq were reduced to 10 men early in the match.
Habib Diarra gave Senegal the lead with a deflected strike before Iraq suffered a major setback in the 13th minute when Rebin Sulaka was sent off following a VAR review for a challenge on Sadio Mane. Despite the extra man, Senegal found it difficult to break down Iraq’s disciplined defence and had to wait until the second half to pull away.
Ismaila Sarr doubled the advantage with his fourth World Cup goal, becoming Senegal’s all-time leading scorer in the tournament. Substitute Pape Gueye then stole the spotlight with two stunning long-range strikes before Iliman Ndiaye completed the rout with a thunderous finish.
Despite the emphatic scoreline, Senegal coach Malick Thiaw acknowledged there was room for improvement after a sluggish start and urged his side to produce a sharper performance should they advance to the knockout stage.
Senegal finished third in Group I behind France and Norway with three points and must now wait for the conclusion of Group J and K fixtures on Saturday to discover whether their tally is enough to secure one of the tournament’s best third-placed qualification spots.
Iraq, meanwhile, exited the World Cup after losing all three group matches in what was only their second appearance at the tournament in 40 years.