Senegal came from behind to pick up a famous 4-2 victory over Brazil in Lisbon, becoming just the third different African nation after Cameroon and Morocco ever to beat the Seleção.
Brazil started the stronger of the two sides as Bruno Guimarães almost opened the scoring inside seven minutes, but his shot from the edge of the box flew inches over the crossbar. The Brazilian s did manage to convert that early dominance into a lead in the 12th minute though, when Vinícius Júnior whipped a curling cross into the box onto the head of Lucas Paquetá, who nodded in past Mory Diaw.
The Brazilians then thought they had a chance to double their lead after Vinícius was fouled in the box, but after a VAR review, the decision was overturned for an offside in the buildup. Despite being dominated in the early stages, Senegal took advantage of that reprieve and equalised midway through the half, as a cross into the box was not dealt with by the Brazilian defence, and Habib Diallo smashed the ball into the back of the net with a powerful volley.
Senegal looked the better team after drawing level, but could not add a second goal before half time. The Lions of Teranga did not have that problem in the second half though, scoring twice in three minutes to open up a two-goal lead over their opponents. While future history books might overlook the fact, the lead-giving effort came via a fortuitous deflection, as Marquinhos inadvertently deflected in an Ismaïla Sarr header that was flying across the face of the goal.
Determined to be part of the first Senegal side in 21 years to fell a non-African opponent ranked inside FIFA’s top-20, Sadio Mané then produced a moment of pure class, as the Premier League and Bundesliga title winner curled in a stunning effort from just inside the box. Capping off a manic five minutes, Brazil hit back quickly when Marquinhos managed to redeem himself for his earlier mistake, capitalising on a loose ball following a corner and somehow sending a looping shot over Diaw.
Despite the nerves that always come with taking a single-goal lead into six minutes of injury time, they were banished once and for all with mere seconds to go, when Mané added a fourth goal via the penalty spot against a Brazil side sorely lacking in ideas and creativity. With referee Gustavo Correia’s final whistle, the Brazilians were left looking back on a third defeat in four matches against African opposition, and hoping more than ever for a positive response from Carlo Ancelotti in the coming weeks, as the search for interim boss Ramon Menezes’ long-term successor continues.
