DAKAR (Reuters) – Injury has forced striker Mame Birame Diouf to withdraw from Senegal’s squad for their African Nations Cup qualifiers against Tunisia next week, bringing to four the number of casualties in their squad.
Diouf suffered a hamstring injury playing for Stoke City on Monday and will miss the matches in Dakar on Oct. 10 and Tunis on Oct. 15. Senegal’s football federation also announced on Saturday the withdraw of left back Pape Ndiaye Souare, injured playing for Lille in the Europa League on Thursday.
West Ham United’s Cheikhou Kouyate and Lamine Sane of Girondins Bordeaux had already pulled out at the start of the week because of injury.
Senegal have named two replacements — Pape Gueye of Ukraine’s Metalist Kharkiv and teenage defender Ibrahima Mbaye of Inter Milan. Senegal have made a flying start to their Group G campaign with two wins from the opening matches. They must finish in the top two in the group to qualify for next year’s finals in Morocco.
