<p>Tottenham Hotspur reportedly want to sign <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/chelsea-tv-schedule/">Chelsea</a> goalkeeper Edouard Mendy this summer. The <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-12102095/Tottenham-want-sign-Edouard-Mendy-Chelsea-look-Hugo-Lloris-replacement.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Daily Mail</em></a> is claiming that the Senegal shot stopper has been on the north London club’s radar for months now. Mendy initially joined Chelsea in 2020, but has since fallen behind Kepa Arrizabalaga in the pecking order.</p>



<p>Longtime <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tottenham-tv-schedule/">Spurs</a> keeper Hugo Lloris looks almost certain to depart the team during the upcoming transfer window. This is despite the fact that the Frenchman still has one more year remaining on his current contract. Nevertheless, the 36-year-old club captain is being tracked by multiple clubs around the globe. It was <a href="https://theathletic.com/4508975/2023/05/11/hugo-lloris-saudi-arabia-tottenham/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">revealed last week</a> that a Saudi Arabian side apparently offered to triple the keeper’s salary to move abroad.</p>



<h2>Lloris has been key player in Spurs team for over a decade</h2>



<p>Lloris has been a mainstay in the Spurs team since his move from Lyon nearly 11 years ago. During his time in England, the keeper has played nearly 450 total competitive matches for the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/premier-league-tv-schedule/">Premier League</a> club. However, a hip injury will keep him on the sidelines for the remainder of the season. The setback means that Lloris may have played his final game with the team. Although he has not managed to collect silverware with Spurs, Lloris picked up the 2018 World Cup trophy with France.</p>



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<h2>Senegal international currently backing up Kepa </h2>



<p>Mendy was once regarded as a top keeper when he arrived from Rennes. He was brought in as essentially a replacement for Kepa at the time. Mendy helped the Blues win the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/champions-league-tv-schedule/">UEFA Champions League</a> title in 2021 under manager Thomas Tuchel. Nevertheless, injuries and form have relegated Mendy back to the bench.</p>



<p>Kepa regained his position as Chelsea’s number one between the sticks this season. In fact, Mendy has only featured for the west London club once since November. This happened to be the teams 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest last weekend.</p>



<p>It has been widely <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/pulisic-may-be-on-chopping-block-in-chelsea-summer-fire-sale-20230414-WST-428543.html">reported</a> that the Blues will look to offload many players during the summer transfer period. Mendy could very well be part of the mass exodus. Chelsea are looking to rebuild following a disastrous season. Team brass spent nearly $600 million on new players, but the club will finish the campaign in the middle of the table.</p>



<p><em>Photo: Imago</em></p>


Spurs interested in Chelsea's Mendy, says report

Spurs are reportedly interested in signing Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy this summer, according to reports.

Spurs interested in Chelsea's Mendy, says report - World Soccer Talk

<p>Reigning <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/02/07/senegals-cup-of-nations-triumph-sees-potential-fulfilled-at-last/">African Cup of Nations</a> champions <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/nations/senegal-national-team-tv-schedule/">Senegal </a>travel to the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/category/world-cup-2022/">2022 World Cup</a> with an entire continent’s expectations on its shoulders. The <em>Lions of Teranga</em> are being touted as the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/world-cup-predictions-soccer-broadcasters-make-their-picks-20221110-WST-406704.html">tournament’s dark horses</a>. The side aims to better its 2002 showing where it reached the quarterfinals. </p>



<p>Aliou Cisse, the current head coach, captained his country in South Korea and Japan. He hopes to instill those fond memories on his current batch of great talents.</p>



<p>The African side <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/05/07/top-10-world-cup-upsets-ranked/">shocked the world</a> with a 1-0 win over defending champions France in the opening game in 2002. Eventually, Senegal lost to Turkey, which ended its dream run. </p>



<p>Twenty years on, Cisse travels to the World Cup with a team of world-class players carrying expectations of an entire continent. They must, however, be cautious following a disappointing outing in Russia in 2018 where they crashed out in the Group Stages. Senegal and Japan had identical records, but Cisse’s side were eliminated due to the fair play rule as they had more yellow cards than their counterparts.</p>



<h5>Qualification Review</h5>



<p>Senegal beat Egypt <a href="https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/60881797" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">on penalties</a> in a two-legged playoff, recovering from the 1-0 deficit in the first leg. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrJ3nDcAsfA" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sadio Mané scored the decisive penalty</a> after his then-Liverpool colleague Mohamed Salah missed his spot kick following. Salah had been targeted by lasers from the stands. Later, FIFA fined the Senegal Football Federation for the crowd disorder. All of this happened just weeks after Senegal had beaten Egypt for its maiden African Championship.</p>



<h2>Senegal enters World Cup 2022 confident, but Mané raises questions</h2>



<p>Apart from <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/sadio-mane-out-of-world-cup-due-to-injury-say-reports-20221109-WST-407350.html">the aforementioned Mané</a>, there are two stand out players and world beaters: Chelsea duo Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy. </p>



<p>AFCON Young Player of the Year Pape Matar hardly features for Tottenham but will look to catch the eye along with Watford’s Ismaila Sarr. Idrissa Gana Gueye and Cheikhou Kouyate of Everton and Nottingham Forest are not the players can light up a game in the middle of the park, but Senegal will hope they can play the role of supporting cast to perfection. </p>



<p>Namplys Medy of Leicester City is also expected to feature as Senegal line up in a 4-3-3 formation. Watch out for Salernitana’s Boulaye Dia who has already scored five goals in 12 games (as of press time) in <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/serie-a-tv-schedule/">Serie A</a>. The 25-year-old on loan from Villarreal has the pace and trickery to trouble defenders during the Lions’ lightning quick counter attacks.</p>



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<h5>Memorable moments</h5>



<p>While Papa Bouba Diop might have scored three goals in 2002, including the arguably biggest goal in Senegal’s football history in the win over France, El-Hadji Diouf is perhaps the country’s biggest cult hero. </p>



<p>Diouf played for several sides in the Premier League. For example, he represented Liverpool and Blackburn Rovers even when he was not on top form. Instead, the striker made the news with his ‘bad-boy’ demeanor. Diouf rarely saw eye to eye with Steven Gerrard in Merseyside. Meanwhile, Jamie Carragher once called his former teammate the worst Liverpool No. 9 of all time. Unsurprisingly, that did not blow over well with the Senegalese. </p>



<p>Mané, however, considers Diouf one of his heroes.</p>



<h5>What to expect</h5>



<p>Senegal matches up against the hosts, Qatar, as well as Ecuador and the Netherlands. Most expect Senegal to make it out of the group. The clash with the Netherlands should determine who finishes at the top. Then, that goes a long way in deciding who likely faces England in the round of 16. Or, if not England, the unlikely other winner of Group B.</p>



<p>The runner-up of Group A, Senegal’s group, takes on the winner of Group B. That group holds England, the United States, Wales and Iran. If it is England, Senegal’s side has the capability to beat England on its day. After that, France is the likely opposition based on experts’ predictions. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<div class="ck-twitter"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Official. Senegal list for the World Cup includes Sadio Mané. 🚨🇸🇳 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WorldCup2022?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WorldCup2022</a><br><br>Full squad: <a href="https://t.co/UwEja4nW30">pic.twitter.com/UwEja4nW30</a></p>— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) <a href="https://twitter.com/FabrizioRomano/status/1591011596838395904?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 11, 2022</a></blockquote></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>Should Senegal finish top of their group, they are likely to face either USA or Wales. Beating either of those two sides sets up a potential date with Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the quarterfinals.</p>



<p><strong>Hipster Predictions: </strong>Senegal finishes second in their group. Then, it beats England in the round of 16 and reach the quarter finals where they will face France. Twenty years after that famous win in Seoul, Senegal defeats the defending champions, France. It reaches the semifinals as the first African side to get that far.</p>



<p><em>PHOTO: IMAGO / Sebastian Frej</em></p>


Senegal aim to better 2002 showing in World Cup

Senegal enter the 2022 World Cup as the tournament's dark horses. Can they go one better than their 2002 exploits from South Korea and Japan

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