Mane sends Senegal to World Cup as Salah suffers penalty woe for Egypt amid laser chaos

By Sports Desk March 29, 2022

Sadio Mane fired Senegal to the World Cup as Liverpool team-mate Mohamed Salah suffered penalty shoot-out agony with Egypt after being targeted with lasers by fans.

Senegal recovered from a 1-0 first-leg deficit to land victory by the same margin at the Abdoulaye Wade Stadium on Tuesday.

That meant the play-off, tied at 1-1 after 120 minutes of the second leg, went down to a battle of spot-kicks to decide who would go to Qatar 2022, and Salah missed Egypt's first penalty when he fired over the bar.

Lasers flashed across the pitch and were directed at Egypt's star man, who could not find the focus to convert from 12 yards.

The first four penalties were missed, with Salah's the second of those, before both sides netted their third kicks.

Egypt's Mostafa Mohamed failed with the visitors' fourth penalty, seeing his shot blocked, and that allowed Mane to step up and crack a fierce spot-kick past Mohamed El Shenawy, booking a place in Friday's draw.

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    What Zlatan Ibrahimovic likes most about Qatar is everything.

    He made that point in a Sweden press conference on Tuesday, giving 10/10 ratings to all aspects of the World Cup experience and saluting the country's lack of crime and drug problems.

    The 41-year-old Milan striker had no part to play in the Qatar 2022 finals, owing to Sweden's failure to qualify, but he was a guest at the final, being pictured at the Argentina versus France showpiece game along with tennis superstar Novak Djokovic.

    Asked for his impressions of the tournament and the country as a whole, Ibrahimovic said: "It was fantastic. As awesome as it gets. I was there for two days with the family."

    He gave a rundown of his ratings for all aspects he encountered, saying: "The organisation: 10 points. The experience: 10 points. The match: 10 points. Crowd: 10 points. The food: 10 points. The journey: 10 points. Everything was 10 points."

    When it was pointed out to Ibrahimovic that Qatar has faced criticism over alleged human rights abuses, Ibrahimovic stuck to his theme and gave a final mark to the country.

    "Ten points," he said.

    Pressure groups have claimed women and people from LGBTQ+ communities are particularly badly treated in Qatar, along with migrant workers.

    Amnesty International said ahead of the World Cup that hundreds of thousands of such workers had been exploited, pointing to thousands dying suddenly or unexpectedly.

    The same organisation said last week that "many thousands of workers have been unable to obtain compensation for horrific abuses linked to the World Cup", calling on football's world governing body FIFA to ensure this is rectified.

    Qatar has been accused by its critics of attempting to 'sportswash' its reputation by putting on a successful major event that runs smoothly and paints the country in a positive light internationally.

    Ibrahimovic will not be levelling such an accusation at Qatar's door, though, because he had a 10/10 time during his stay.

    Speaking in a further interview with broadcaster SVT, the former Barcelona, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain striker added: "I think they have given opportunities to get a job. Then how they treated them, I haven't been there and seen, so I can't judge and answer those questions."

    Ibrahimovic played for PSG during the early years of the Qatar Sports Investments era at the Parc des Princes, and Qatari club chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi joined him and Djokovic in their World Cup final photo.

    The veteran Swede therefore has that close connection, and Ibrahimovic said: "Qatar as a country, I think it is a system that works. Are there drugs? No. Is there crime? No. Is there crime in Sweden? Yes, very much. Drugs? Yes.

    "Qatar's system works. The Swedish system? It works, but if it works 100 per cent, I don't know."

  • Mbappe 'ticks all the boxes' as Deschamps explains why PSG star is new France captain Mbappe 'ticks all the boxes' as Deschamps explains why PSG star is new France captain

    Didier Deschamps backed Kylian Mbappe to bring a "unifying" influence to his new role as captain of France.

    The Paris Saint-Germain forward was the outstanding candidate to replace Hugo Lloris, who retired from international duty after the World Cup.

    Mbappe was reportedly told of his appointment by coach Deschamps after a dinner on Monday, and Antoine Griezmann has been confirmed as vice-captain.

    Reports said Griezmann, who turned 32 on Tuesday, was disappointed not to be handed the captaincy, having been a mainstay of the team for many years.

    However, Mbappe is himself richly experienced on the international stage after making his debut as an 18-year-old some six years ago. He has gone on to score 36 goals in 66 appearances.

    Twelve of those goals have come in World Cups, with Mbappe helping France win the 2018 tournament before their runner-up finish at Qatar 2022, where he won the Golden Boot.

    Deschamps told French broadcaster TF1: "Kylian Mbappe is the new captain of Les Blues. Antoine Griezmann is the vice-captain.

    "Kylian ticks all the boxes to have this responsibility. On the field as in group life, by being a unifying element."

    Mbappe will lead the team into their Euro 2024 qualifiers, which start against the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland this fortnight.

    His first game as skipper will be against the Dutch on Friday at the Stade de France.

    France's squad gathered at their Clairefontaine training base on Monday. They trained on Tuesday with the crucial question of who might be captain having been resolved.

  • Lazio condemn anti-Semitic crowd shame in Rome derby Lazio condemn anti-Semitic crowd shame in Rome derby

    Lazio have condemned anti-Semitic behaviour by a number of their supporters during Sunday's Rome derby after Italy's sports minister expressed concerns.

    As well as chanting from fans that sparked a complaint from the Jewish Community of Rome, one fan was seen to be wearing a shirt with the name 'Hitlerson' on its back, along with the number 88, which is used by neo-Nazis as numerical code for 'Heil Hitler'.

    Efforts are under way to identify that Lazio fan, with the club recognising there is a problem. They indicated progress had already been made and said news of investigations would come within hours.

    In January, Lazio were moved to condemned "despicable, shameful and anachronistic" racist abuse aimed at Lecce players Samuel Umtiti and Lameck Banda in a Serie A match.

    Now they face more scrutiny over this episode.

    Ruth Dureghello, president of the Jewish Community of Rome, wrote on Twitter: "A whole curve singing anti-Semitic chants, a 'fan' in the stands with the Hitlerson shirt and the number 88 and we, as always, are the only ones to get indignant and protest. Is it possible that everyone continues to ignore it?"

    In response to that message, Italy's sports minister Andrea Abodi said: "Impossible to pretend nothing happened. I will do my part, as I feel I have to do. Respect is due and not negotiable!"

    Lazio's Curva Nord was ordered to be closed for a game against Empoli after the abuse dished out to the Lecce players.

    The club issued a statement on Tuesday in which they said Lazio were "at the forefront, especially under the current presidency, in publicly condemning, preventing and unreservedly repressing any discriminatory, racist or anti-Semitic demonstration or action".

    It said the club "dissociates itself from any illegal and anachronistic behaviour of this type, as it is above all an injured party by such behaviour".

    Lazio won the derby 1-0, with three players sent off, including one from each team at the end of the game.

    Lazio said the anti-Semitic conduct amounted to "a dangerous germ" in which many who take part "do not even know the meaning and scope" of their actions.

    The club said they had attempted to "avoid, isolate and contrast these phenomena", saying their commitment is to "inclusion, sportsmanship and respect for all".

    Lazio's actions will be judged along with their words, and the club said they had observers at the Roma match, led by former deputy chief of police Nicolo D'Angelo, looking to identify those responsible.

    The club said: "In the next few hours we will communicate the already positive results of our activity, trusting in the effective collaboration of the institutions responsible for safeguarding democratic rules."

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