The TotalEnergies Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) is not a competition that the Senegalese have had fine success since inception. They have competed two times, the first two editions, but have not qualified since then, until the 2022 edition.
The new generation of players however want to change this, especially on the backdrop of the Lions of Teranga winning their first ever TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations and their qualification to the round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup.
Senegal squeezed into qualification after edging out Guinea's Sylli Nationale, third place finishers in 2020, 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw over two legs.
Match schedule
January 14: Ivory Coast - Senegal, 8:00 p.m. local time, Annaba Stadium
January 18: Senegal - Uganda, 8:00 p.m. local time, Annaba Stadium
January 22: Senegal - DR Congo, 8 p.m. local time, Annaba Stadium
Coach: Pape Thiaw
He is part of the 2002 generation of the Senegal team that made history by reaching the quarter finals of the FIFA World Cup and the final of the AFCON. He is among the players of that famous team that decided to trade their boots for the coaching board.
He took charge of the team after the demise of Joseph Koto and after aiding them to a first CHAN qualification in 11 years, he will be out to push them to a good finish, better than their fourth place in 2009.
Players to watch:
Goalkeeper Aliou Badry, present at the 2021 AFCON conquest as one of the reserve goalkeepers, will be one to watch out for in Algeria. Apart from being part of the main national team, Badry is also a key member of his team, Casa Sports and has won a Cup double with the side at home.
He was one of the great architects of Senegal's qualification for Algeria with his saves in the penalty shootout against Guinea. He is looking towards a perfect CHAN outing as he battles Edouard Mendy for the regular starting slot in the main national team.
Another player to keep a keen eye on in Algeria will be Meleye Junior Diagne. He is one of the best forwards currently in the Senegalese league and plays his club football with Diambars.
He is expected to lead Pape Thiaw's attack line in Algeria.
History in CHAN
Senegal is one of the pioneer qualifiers of the CHAN tournament. They participated in the inaugural eight-team tournament in 2009, reaching the semis where they lost to Ghana on penalties and went on to suffer a 2-1 defeat to Zambia in the third place match.
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They qualified for their second CHAN in 2011, but failed to get off the group phase after earning four points off one win and a draw.
They have failed to qualify again since then.
Local teams in CAF interclubs
While Senegalese clubs might not have a massive history in the CAF Interclub matches, Teungueth FC created a surprise in 2020, qualifying to the group stages of the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League for the first time ever.
In Senegal, it is the academies and training centres that are more talked about than clubs. The likes of Generation Foot which gave birth to the great Sadio Mane, Diambars, Dakar Sacré Coeur, among others are the suppliers of players to the local national team.
