Senegal Coach Aliou Cisse is set to include ‘injured’ Sadio Mane in his 26-man squad for the Qatar World Cup when he announces the squad Friday, November 11. The forward suffered a leg injury during Bayern Munich’s 6-1 Bundesliga victory over Werder Bremen on Tuesday, November 8. He was substituted by Leroy Sane after 15 minutes of the game and went straight down the tunnel for further treatment. His injury came just 13 days before Senegal play their first game at the 2022 World Cup against the Netherlands, casting doubts over his chances of playing the world’s most prestigious football tournament. However, Senegal hope their talisman will be fit in time to make it on the plane to Qatar as both Bayern and Senegal doctors continue to assess the extent of his injury. One thing is certain, Sadio Mane will be on the list tomorrow, a source told AFP. According to the source, Mane remains calm, he's professional, he knows that injury is part of the job. The talisman was diagnosed with an injury to his right fibula and Bayern said he would undergo further tests in the coming days while Senegal team doctor, Manuel Afonso, also flew to Munich for further assessment on his injury. The 30-year-old scored the winning penalty as Senegal won their first Africa Cup of Nations title in February, beating Egypt in a shootout in the final. Mane also converted the decisive spot-kick in the World Cup play-off the following month as Senegal again defeated Egypt on penalties. Besides the Netherlands, the Lions of Teranga will also take on hosts Qatar and Ecuador in Group A. Mane, the two-time African player of the year, is pivotal to the African champions' hopes of progressing to the knockout stages but his injury came as a major blow for the country’s ambitions. Augustin Senghor, president of the Senegalese football federation, told AFP he was worried. We cross our fingers; we have been worried since we received the news.
