Three points will be at stake as Senegal and Gambia draw swords at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2023). It'll be fascinating to see how things pan out when it's all said and done.
Senegal vs Gambia overview
This Group C match will take place at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium in Yamoussoukro on Monday January 15. Kick-off time is 3pm GMT+1.
Senegal
The Teranga Lions of Senegal won their first Nations Cup title a couple of years ago. They've consistently put up solid results since then, losing just twice against African opposition in the last two years.
Aliou Cisse's troops are on a quest to defend their AFCON title, no team has done so since 2010. As a matter of fact, no defending champion reached the semi-finals of the Nations Cup since 2010.
Gambia
The Scorpions of Gambia qualified for the Nations Cup for the first time in history a couple of years ago. They impressed in their first outing at the AFCON, where they reached the quarter-final, losing to Cameroon.
Tom Saintfiet's men are on a quest to match, or better their performance at this tournament two years ago. Being in the so-called ‘group of death,' they'll have to prove they aren't a one-time wonder.
Senegal vs Gambia head to head
Senegal and Gambia first met in 1980, and they've clashed over 20 times since then. Including African Nations Championships (CHAN) games, these teens have squared off against each other on 23 occasions.
However, Gambia are still hunting for their first win against Senegal. They lost 13 of those encounters, with 10 draws.
This will be the first meeting between these teams at the AFCON since 2003. In three previous clashes at this competition, Senegal have one win, with the other two meetings ending in stalemates.
Senegal vs Gambia potential lineups
Aliou Cisse has experimented with different formations over the past couple of months. However, the Teranga Lions lined up in a 4-3-3 formation in eight of their last 11 games. We should expect something similar on Monday, with Ismaila Sarr, Nicolas Jackson and Sadio Mané spearheading the attack.
Likewise, Gambia are expected to adopt the same 4-3-3 formation they used in three of their last four matches.
On that note, these are our probable Senegal vs Gambia lineups:
Senegal
Goalkeeper: Edouard Mendy.
Defenders: Moussa Niakhaté, Kalidou Koulibaly, Abdou Diallo, Krépin Diatta.
Midfielders: Matar Sarr, Pape Gueye, Ismail Jacobs.
Forwards: Ismaila Sarr, Nicholas Jackson, Sadio Mané.
Gambia
Goalkeeper: Modou Jobe.
Defenders: Ibou Touray, Omar Colley, Bubacarr Sanneh, Muhammed Sanneh.
Midfielders: Ablie Jallow, Alasana Manneh, Ebou Adams.
Forwards: Ebrima Colley, Assan Ceesay, Musa Barrow.
Senegal vs Gambia tactical analysis
Senegal have strung up a four-match unbeaten run with three wins and a draw. They've been a tough team to beat, losing just once in their last 11 matches in all competitions.
Aliou Cisse's men have also been very solid defensively, as they didn't concede in their last four games. This is in contrast with Gambia, who saw their defence breached nine times in their last four matches.
In fact, the Scorpions have conceded at least two goals in four consecutive matches. They are coming off back-to-back losses, with no wins in three games.
Senegal vs Gambia prediction
This isn't exactly going to be an easy match-up for the Gambians. Not only have they not been able to beat Senegal in 23 previous meetings, they'll have to find a way to break a defence that hasn't conceded in over 360 minutes.
That said, six of the last eight skirmishes between these teams produced less than three goals. Taking into account that five of Senegal's last six games went below the 2.5 goal threshold, we shouldn't expect many goals in this match.
Our Senegal vs Gambia prediction is under 2.5 total goals.
Where to watch Senegal vs Gambia live
Fans from Senegal can tune into RTS 1, Canal+ CAN and AfroSport TV for live coverage of this match.
Likewise Gambians can catch all the action live on Supersport and AfroSport TV.
