Van Dijk sad for Mane as Senegal star ruled out of World Cup
Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk says he is sad that his former clubmate Sadio Mane will miss the World Cup.
Senegal announced on Thursday that former Liverpool star
Sadio Manehas undergone a knee surgery and will miss the
World Cup. Reports suggest that Mane could face several months on the sidelines.
Ahead of the Netherlands match against Senegal in their Group A opener on Monday,
Virgil Van Dijksaid the World Cup will be poorer without Mane.
He said:
“I feel terrible for him to miss the World Cup. The tournament deserves the best players in the world and he is definitely one of them.
“He is also a very good friend of mine, so I am really disappointed that I cannot play against him. Senegal have enough players who can replace him, but they are not like him. Mane is in a different category.”
Liverpool star also said that he thinks Argentina, Brazil, and France are the favourites to win the 2022 World Cup.
“For me, Argentina, Brazil and France are the favourite countries,”
he told reporters.
“The Brazilians are always there. The Argentines are strong and the French have a great selection. We have a good group, we have a very experienced trainer, but above all we have team spirit.”
The Netherlands is in Group A with Senegal, Qatar, and Ecuador. The World Cup starts on Sunday when Qatar plays Ecuador at the Al Bayt stadium in Al Khor.
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