WORLD CUP 2022: Time for an African country to win the World cup– Koulibaly
By Munachimso Obienyi
Senegal defender, Kalidou Koulibaly believes the time has arrived for an African nation to win the World Cup trophy and has predicted a difficult tournament in Qatar.
The World Cup is scheduled to kick off November 20, 2022 and end December 18, 2022. Senegal have been drawn in Group A alongside Netherlands, Qatar and Ecaudor.
Having captained his side at the last World Cup in Russia in which Senegal became the first team in World Cup history to be eliminated using the fair play rule after being tied with Japan on the first six tiebreakers, the 31 year old Koulibaly who is expected to lead the Teranga lions at this year’s tournament, believes that the African sides who will be playing at this year’s tournament will find it difficult.
He said, “We still remember the 2018 World Cup because we could have done better, we failed to qualify from the group stage and I was very sad about going home that early. It is going to be even more difficult for us now we are the African champions because all the teams will be careful [when playing against us] and for me I think it is time an African country delivers and wins the World Cup because we are a very determined continent”.
Koulibaly further revealed if African teams set up their goals heading to the Gulf nation, they will be able to get positive results. Apart from Senegal, Africa’s representatives are Ghana, Cameroon, Tunisia, and Morocco.
“We should set our goals for ourselves, like in the AFCON in Cameroon when we qualified to the Round of 16, all the guys in the dressing room were like, oh great, and I was like guys we are not happy, our competition is just starting here, now if we lose one game we go back home, so we must always have our goals”, he said.
