In a big tournament, it is often said that the hard part is to start well.
Not to play well.
In this case, Senegal can be satisfied with its entry into the competition, in the African Cup of Nations.
The Teranga Lions won at the very end of the match on the smallest of the margins against Zimbabwe (1-0).
An opponent who, on paper, was much inferior to him.
Led by their captain, the Parisian Idrissa Gana Gueye, the Senegalese offered a very poor technical performance with only four small shots on target.
Dominating but sterile, the teammates of Abdou Diallo, the other Parisian of the team, even caused scares on the hour mark when their goalkeeper Seny Dieng had to repel at close range a strike by the Zimbabwean Teenage Hadebe.
Sadio Mané did not tremble
But the men of trainer Aliou Cissé were able to be patient.
With extra time running out, defensive midfielder Kevin Madzongwe touched the ball with his hand.
Mr Escobar, the referee immediately whistled a penalty while claiming the support of the video to validate his decision.
Or after long seconds, the VAR confirmed the illegal hand.
Sadio Mané, the star of the team, did not tremble to give the victory to his selection (1-0, 90 + 6 ′).
The Senegalese will have to be, of course, much more impactful next Friday against Guinea for their second group match.
