Sadio Mane ‘very proud’ of Senegal team-mates after World Cup defeat to England

Sadio Mane missed the World Cup through injury (Picture: Getty)

Sadio Mane insists he is ‘very proud’ of his Senegal team-mates after their World Cup run was ended by England.

African champions Senegal suffered a 3-0 defeat to England at the Al Bayt Stadium on Sunday.

Goals from Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka saw Gareth Southgate’s side advance to the quarter-finals and set up a mouth-watering clash with World Cup holders France.

Mane missed Senegal’s World Cup campaign through injury but said he was ‘very proud’ of his team-mates as they qualified for the knockout stages from Group A before losing to England.

‘Dear brothers, you have fallen into arms,’ said Mane, who left Liverpool to join Bayern Munich last summer.

‘The people are very proud of your journey and you have put the balm in the hearts of Senegalese and all supporters by defending the national flag with dignity.

‘Continue learning and good luck. We will go in search of more Trophies Inshallah.’

Senegal coach Aliou Cisse, meanwhile, bemoaned defensive lapses as his side exited the World Cup after an emphatic defeat to England.

‘We were playing a very good England team and you saw that in the challenges and their physical strength,’ Cisse said. ‘Plus we weren’t as good as we should have been.

‘After the first goal it was tough for us and then we let the second in just before half-time. The third was key.

‘We need to take the lessons and think about them. It’s an ongoing piece. We’ve been working hard to get to this level.’

England, who reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2018 and the Euro 2020 final, are now three wins away from lifting the Jules Rimet trophy.

Following the 3-0 win over Senegal, West Ham midfielder Declan Rice said: ‘I don’t think we get the credit we deserve in our performances.

‘If you look at other teams, like the Netherlands and Argentina, they win their games comfortably and they get called ‘masterclasses’.

‘With us, it always gets picked off. The negative things always come that way. If you look at the last couple of games, it’s been faultless. I think countries should be starting to fear us now because we’re a great team.

‘Going into the tournament, there was a lot of talk that we don’t score enough goals. That’s another one we’ve kept people quiet on.

‘There was a lot of scrutiny around the defence and conceding goals, but it’s been solid. We’re going to keep building and pushing.’

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Senegal are out of the World Cup…