In the first of two international friendlies, Senegal prepare for the visit of Zambia at the Stade Lat Dior on Saturday.

Senegal will aim to extend their current unbeaten streak on home soil, while the away side go in search of back-to-back triumphs on the road.

Match preview

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Senegal were held to a 1-1 draw by Eswatini when the nations met in the final Group I fixture of their AFCON qualifiers.

Having already secured qualification heading into the game, Aliou Cisse opted to field a relatively weaker team, and he needed a last-gasp leveller from Cheikhou Kouyate to save his side from what would have been a shock defeat.

Nonetheless, The Lions of Teranga managed to navigate their qualifying campaign unbeaten and were one of only seven teams to do so.

Saturday's hosts are yet to taste defeat on home soil in any of the last nine matches, winning seven of them and drawing two.

However, they are yet to come out victorious in any of the last four meetings against their next visitors, losing two of the last three by a combined score of 5-3.

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Despite a 2-0 victory over Zimbabwe in their final fixture in Group H of the 2022 AFCON qualifiers, Zambia failed to book a place in the competition.

Milutin Sredojevic's men finished a point behind their opponents on the day, and will not be in contention for the tournament they last won in 2012.

Nonetheless, The Chipolopolo are unbeaten in their last three matches in all competitions, which is impressive considering the fact they have faced Algeria and Cameroon in that time.

Saturday's game in Senegal is followed by a frenetic five-day period where they will be going up against Benin Republic and Sudan.

Team News

Alfred Gomis is likely to start between the sticks as Edouard Mendy was in action for Chelsea less than a week ago in the UEFA Champions League final.

Sadio Mane had an average Premier League season by his high standards but he finished with a flourish, scoring twice in the final fixture versus Crystal Palace, which should give him a confidence boost going into Saturday's clash.

Joining Mane in attack could be Ismaila Sarr who enjoyed a productive campaign in the second tier of English football and helped Watford gain promotion back into the top flight.

Patson Daka's 27 league goals helped Salzburg claim yet another Austrian league title as well as the Golden Boot for the first time in his career.

It is no surprise that the Zambian forward is responsible for four of his side's last five goals, making him their biggest threat up front.

Senegal possible starting lineup:
Gomis; Sabaly, Koulibaly, Kouyate, Wague; Ndiaye, Kanoute, Diatta; Mane, Dia, Sarr

Zambia possible starting lineup:
Chibwe; Kabwe, A.Chama, Chepeshi, Mwape; Sakala, Bwalya, Musonda; C.Chama, Daka, Mwepu

We say: Senegal 1-0 Zambia

Games involving Senegal have often turned out to be low-scoring affairs of late, and we can see that trend continuing in this one. We are also tipping the home side to come out on top at the end of the 90 minutes.

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