Pape Thiaw congratulates players for “tremendous performance” as Senegal stun England | OneFootball

It was an historic moment for Senegal as they claimed victory over England in a friendly game at the City Ground, with the African side coming from behind in order to maintain their astonishing unbeaten run which now extends to 22 games after beating the EURO2024 finalists.

Manager Pape Thiaw was impressed with his side’s performance and display, beginning his press conference by congratulating the performance from his players and the mentality that they showed to come from behind.

“First thing I would like to do is to congratulate my players for the tremendous performance and mindset that they showed out on the pitch today. I think that from the very beginning they set out the display they wanted to win. Well done to England as well, they showed some good form in certain periods of the game,” he said.

He further went on to say: “I think we showed a great mentality, we came back, managed to equaliser just before half-time. Then the second half half we were able to pose our own game a little bit more, we scored the two goals in order to win, what was a great victory for us. It was great to be able to win here, at a country imbued with football.”

Thiaw spoke about how he aimed to extend Senegal’s unbeaten run, and now looks ahead to important World Cup qualifiers.

“Our aim when we were out on the pitch was not to lose, as we wanted to maintain our 21-match unbeaten streak and take it to 22 matches. Now, in a couple of months, we have two big, big qualifying games coming up so our focus is now going to be on those games,” he said.

Finally, he spoke about how his midfield was able to compete against England and how they showed their strengths in order to beat the opposition in the midfield battle, also going on to speak on how his players grew into the game.

“I think we’re strong in all areas. Today, we were especially strong in the middle. I think that some of our players have been growing into the game a lot more, there beginning to click together, almost certainly because they are playing together a lot more,” Thiaw said.

Senegal will now look to build on a famous victory against England, with crucial games coming up in September as they look to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.