African champions, you will be going to Qatar in a few days, where you will be one of the 32 football teams that have pre-deserved to represent their respective countries at the 2022 World Cup. You will be there, on the edge of the Persian Gulf, where you this once will receive the national flag from the hands of the head of state, on November 19 as planned. Then you will proudly wear shirts in the stadiums chosen for your first three matches (Al-Thumama Stadium / Khalifa International Stadium), with the star because of your rank, and keep your title as the first African team, a prestigious position , which you have acquired since then, without forgetting your position, which is still noticeable worldwide.
For the group stage in Doha, a capital that has become so fascinating with a harmonious mix of “modern wonders and ancient traditions”, you will face the Dutch team in order, with famous players such as the famous central defender, Virgil Van Dijk , a former teammate to Bambali’s “Nianthio”, the one from the host country and the one from one of the Andean countries, Jorge Icaza’s homeland (1). From then on, you brave lions should at least have this goal: to go beyond the quarterfinals. On the occasion of such matches, I have the assurance that you will set about achieving this amazing achievement, which in turn will be an immense honor to yourselves and, in addition and at the right time, a remarkable progress in football to the glory of our country and Africa. In this perspective, you will use the weapons that you have already honed, namely the will to win, motivation and cohesion, as well as your unfailing trust in your coach, “El Táctico”, whose significant contribution in the Lair is unmistakable.
Moreover, the heroism, thanks to which you favorably explored the path of initiation to the last can, allows me to have no doubt that it gives you at every step the necessary impetus to skillfully overcome various obstacles in order to occupy a place of election on this high soccer crowd in the Arabian Peninsula. So your countrymen, more united than ever behind you, Gaïndés, will baptize you more during the same year. Moreover, I would like to insist on this result, which is rightly enviable if we only look at your career and that of every African selection. I am not unaware that in this case we can thwart any prognosis and that we must also “know how to lose with dignity”, as the president of the Fsf said. In fact, without fair play or restraint, we deliberately step on the pillars that have long underpinned the charm or magic of the king of sports.
From now on, be ready, Lions of Senegal, to go straight to the point on the lawns of Qatar. So, at the first whistle of the referee in your match against the Netherlands, you will only think about doing what is essential for all of us in this FIFA competition. And certainly, all your abilities, from the physical and moral point of view, will not stop improving in step with your various encounters, which will be followed all over the world by the enthusiasts of the round ball, so that nothing can curb your zeal and prevent you in continuing to defend, with singular valor and great success, the colors of the country.
Good luck to you, our champions!
(1)-Ecuadorian writer (1906-1978), who was one of the most famous indigenous novelists in Latin America.
Badiallo dit Boucounta BA Educator of middle/secondary teachers and inspectors Former Head of Romance Languages ​​Department at Fastef/UCAD
