Pape Thiaw explains his substitutions following Senegal’s defeat by Belgium

The Teranga Lions’ manager explained that some players were physically spent.

The Teranga Lions’ World Cup campaign, held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, came to an end in the worst possible way. Despite leading 2–0 until the 85th minute, Senegal were overturned and knocked out by Belgium (3–2). The defeat sparked criticism of Pape Thiaw’s tactical decisions during the match.

However, the Senegalese manager explained himself at the end of the match. According to Pape Thiaw, the substitutions were made at the request of certain players.

“The substitutions? Some of them were mainly requests from players who couldn’t go on any longer. They were tired. Once you lose after leading 2–0, people are bound to talk about the substitutes, but we shouldn’t focus on that because it was more a matter of physical fitness than tactics.”