Twitter exploded as the Netherlands defeated Senegal 1-0 in their Group B fixture of the 2022 FIFA World Cup today (November 21).
Cody Gakpo scored for Louis van Gaal’s team in the 84th minute. Frenkie de Jong delivered a teasing cross into the box and Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy was beaten to the ball by Gakpo. The PSV Eindhoven player headed home to register his side’s first goal of the tournament.
Vincent Janssen started in attack for the Dutch alongside Steven Bergwijn in the absence of a not fully-fit Memphis Depay. Bergwijn and De Jong came close to scoring for Van Gaal’s side as well.
Depay was brought in by Van Gaal as the game progressed. However, they had to wait until the 84th minute of the game to find a winner.
Davy Klaasen added a second of the game in the dying moments of the injury time. Edouard Mendy couldn’t Memphis Depay’s effort out of the danger zone as Klaasen capitalized to slot the ball home.
Here are some of the best reactions across Twitter as the Netherlands defeated Senegal in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar:
Netherlands star Virgil van Dijk said he was sad to see Sadio Mane miss the 2022 FIFA World Cup
Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk recently said he was saddened to see Senegal forward Sadio Mane miss out at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Mane and Van Dijk were formerly teammates at Liverpool before the attacker moved to Bayern Munich.
Speaking to the media ahead of the game, Mane said (via NDTV):
“I called him the next day and obviously I wanted to know how he was, There were so many rumours coming out. As a friend I wanted to know how he was. It wasn’t the best news he has had and unfortunately he won’t be able to make this tournament. I feel sad for him, I know how hard he worked for this and he has been important for Senegal so he is going to be a big miss for them.”
Oranje are well and truly back in the World Cup after missing out on the 2018 edition. They will next play Ecuador on November 25.