Two teams with unforgettable moments in World Cup history face off in Group A on Monday as Senegal take on Netherlands.

The Lions of Teranga announced themselves on the World Cup stage by memorably dethroning France in 2002, which began a dream run on their debut appearance at the tournament.

Netherlands, meanwhile, have reached the final on three separate occasions but are yet to lift the trophy.

Here, Sports Mole digs a little deeper into how both teams have fared at previous World Cups.

SENEGAL

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Best finish: Quarter-finals (2002)

The 2022 World Cup will only be Senegal's third World Cup appearance, with their run to the quarter-finals in Japan & South Korea representing their best-ever effort at the tournament.

The Indomitable Lions caused one of the greatest upsets in World Cup history by beating holders France in the opening game of the tournament in Seoul, with the late Papa Bouba Diop's 30th-minute strike earning them a historic 1-0 victory.

Successive draws against Denmark and Uruguay proved enough to see them progress as runners-up from Group A, with a 2-1 win after extra time against Sweden in the last 16 setting up an unlikely quarter-final tie against Turkey. After a 0-0 draw in normal time, Ilhan Mansiz's golden goal four minutes into extra time broke Senegalese hearts.

Senegal's only other appearance at a World Cup came under Cisse's management in 2018, when they took four points from three matches but were dumped out on fair play tiebreaker rules after sharing an identical record with Japan. Ultimately, Yerry Mina's 74th-minute winner for Colombia on the final matchday sent them home, as they were leading the group up until that moment.

NETHERLANDS

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Best finish: Runners-up (1974, 1978, 2010)

Netherlands have one of the most peculiar World Cup records of all the major nations, combining three runners-up finishes with failure to qualify on four occasions since 1974.

While the final defeats to West Germany and Argentina in the 1970s hurt an expectant nation, the 2010 final defeat to Spain was devastating as Andres Iniesta netted the only goal of the game with four minutes of extra time remaining.

Netherlands, with Van Gaal in charge, responded with a third-placed finish in 2014, not losing a single game in normal or extra time and only succumbing to Argentina in the semi-finals on penalties, with host nation Brazil being emphatically defeated 3-0 in the third-place playoff.

Since then, Netherlands have been in disastrous form when it has come to major tournaments, most notably failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup as they finished behind France and Sweden in their group.

However, back on the big stage and with a highly-talented squad at his disposal, Van Gaal will be expected to deliver another appearance in the latter stages of this tournament.

Written by
Brett Curtis