Ismaila Sarr looked really bright in Senegal’s opener against France and really should have scored from one of his three efforts in the clash.

This selection would have landed via Super Sub in that game as Ibrahim Mbaye came on for Sarr in the 75th minute and managed to find the back of the net, which shows the depth that Senegal have in forward areas.

Sarr’s confidence shouldn’t be too dented from being wasteful in the opening match, having scored 21 goals for Crystal Palace across all competitions during the 25/26 campaign. 

That’s his best ever return in a single season at club level, and is supported by a pretty decent record for Senegal with 19 goals across 73 caps.

Erling Haaland caused real havoc against Iraq, managing five shots overall, with three finding the target and two the net.

Haaland was in sensational form for Norway during qualifying with 16 goals across just eight starts from a wider shot output of 41 attempts (5.21 per 90). 

That’s a monstrous shot total at international level, and he tends to be pretty accurate with those efforts too - seeing 28 of them find the target (3.57 per 90). 

Haaland has scored 57 goals across just 51 caps for Norway, so he’s in a league of his own when it comes to goalscoring on the international stage, and I expect him to live up to the averages he set during qualifying here.

Norway won comfortably against Iraq, but a side with superior attacking quality probably would have made the game a bit more of a contest, seeing as Stale Solbakken’s side allowed Iraq to have 11 shots and also end up on the scoresheet. 

Nyland plays in goal for Norway and was pretty reliable during qualifying, keeping four clean sheets across five starts with an average of 2.12 saves per 90. He maintained a save percentage of 77.3% and ended the qualifying run with an xG prevented tally of 1.12.

Nyland didn’t feature much for his club side, Sevilla, during the 25/26 campaign, but did start 30 games the season prior and was tested 2.49 times per 90. Senegal have attacking threats to force this level of activity from Nyland, particularly through their front three of Sadio Mane, Nicolas Jackson and Ismaila Sarr.

Both sides saw over 1.5 goals in their opening matches, and I can also see this being a high-scoring game, mainly because of what it means for Senegal.

Senegal have to at least get a point here to stay in the tournament; a heavy defeat would likely spell the end of their campaign, which would be a real disappointment given some of the attention they were receiving before a ball was kicked.

Senegal have seen 2+ goals in four of their last five international matches and allowed the game to be stretched in the final stages against France. I can see something similar happening here, especially if the scoreline is tight.

Senegal managed to get a consolation goal against France in the final stages of their opening game and should be able to find the back of the net here in a must-not-lose game for the African side.

Norway didn’t look completely protected in moments of transition, with their backline easily being the weakest part of their squad. I can see both sides getting joy in attacking areas, especially Senegal against a Norway side that have only kept one clean sheet across their last eight international matches.

Senegal need a positive result here to take into their game against Iraq on the final matchday of the group. I think they’ll be able to get that, or at the very least, end up on the scoresheet.