BATA – Senegal look set to drop captain Mamadou Niang for their crunch Africa Cup of Nations Group A match against co-hosts Equatorial Guinea this evening.
The West Africans were beaten 2-1 by Zambia in their opening game of the tournament on Saturday, a surprise result that undermined their status as one of the favourites for the 2012 Afcon title.
Niang had a particularly disappointing match and was substituted at half time by coach Amara Traore, with Issiar Dia coming on in his place.
Niang defended Traores decision to withdraw him against Chipolpolo, saying: The coach is the one to decide who comes in or out.
Everybody stands together. Defeat is collective. We missed the first period [half]. We lost important opportunities.
But with Niang having been relegated to the B team in training sessions, it appears likely that the Qatar-based forward will not even crack the starting XI for the Teranga Lions second match.
Traore may opt to start with a front three of Demba Ba, Moussa Sow and Dame NDoye who scored Senegals consolation goal against Zambia. Papiss Demba Cisse is another who could break into the starting XI.
The Equatorial Guinea v Senegal match will kick-off at 21h00 at Estadio de Bata.
