The performance and form of Watford’s Ismaila Sarr was one of the highlights for Senegal on an otherwise disappointing evening as they lost their opening World Cup group game 2-0 to Holland.
Sarr wore the number 18 shirt and has Ismaila on the back, and Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt certainly had plenty of opportunities to check the Watford man’s name and number as he saw lots of the back of his shirt.
The Senegal striker – who played on the left of the front three – gave his marker a torrid time and was still a handful when the Dutch used midfielder Denzel Dumfries to double up on Sarr.
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After just 45 seconds Sarr rolled de Ligt on the flank and broke away before crossing for Boulaye Dia to unleash a shot that was deflected wide for a corner.
That set the tone, and Sarr’s next touch in the sixth minute saw him draw a foul from de Ligt, who clattered into the back of him midway inside the Dutch half.
Sarr fired over on the turn after eight minutes, and then would have had Watford head coach Slaven Bilic in a mild state of panic when he collided with Dumfries and stayed on the ground for a short period.
He drew another clumsy foul from de Ligt in the 24th minute when he controlled the ball inside his own half, the Dutchman simply running into him.
In the next attack Sarr controlled a long diagonal pass, dropped his shoulder and left de Ligt for dead before letting fly with a curling shot which Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk headed wide for a corner – a move that was described as “lovely, lovely play” by ITV pundit Ally McCoist.
Five minutes before the break Sarr took on both van Dijk and Dumfries before sending in a low cross that Nathan Ake had to head to safety.
Within a minute he had won another free kick at the expense of de Ligt, his clever turn seeing him bundled to the ground.
“I’d be giving the ball to Sarr if I were Senegal,” enthused McCoist, adding: “Down the left, he has really given them something.”
Ten minutes after the restart de Ligt finally made an impression in the referee’s notebook as well as on Sarr’s back, as he flattened him from behind and picked up a yellow card.
Shortly after the Watford forward gathered a loose ball just inside the Dutch half, drove towards the left of the box and then checked inside, releasing a cross that Ake had to head behind.
As the game wore on, Senegal began to fade out of things and the Dutch – who didn’t muster an on-target goal attempt in the first hour – capitalised with their two goals.
There was still time for Sarr to progress down the left as de Ligt backed off, driving forward and then rolling the ball sideways for substitute Papa Gueye to let fly from the edge of the box, a shot that was parried by Holland’s debutant keeper Andries Noppert.
Sarr broke into the box with 14 minutes left and attempted to play a one-two with Bamba Dieng, but the striker thought otherwise and had a shot instead.
His final action of the game came when he rose superbly to meet a cross from Ismael Jakobs, getting above Ake but was only able to head up and over the target.
Sarr created the most chances of the game (4), was the most fouled player (4) and won the most duels in the game (13).
Senegal’s next Group A fixture is on Friday (November 25), when they face hosts Qatar. The game is live at 1pm on BBC1.
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