Koulibaly fires Senegal into last 16 with Ecuador win

…As Dutch beat catastrophic Qatar 2-0 to top Group A

Winger Ismaila Sarr kept his cool to score a first half penalty and captain Kalidou Koulibaly netted a second goal as Senegal beat Ecuador 2-1 at the Khalifa International Stadium on Tuesday to earn a place in the last 16 of the World Cup.

Sarr scored his penalty in the 44th minute having earned the spot-kick himself, but Ecuador, who needed only a draw to reach the knockout rounds, equalised through Moises Caicedo.

That joy for the South Americans lasted only three minutes though as Koulibaly restored Senegal’s lead, which they were able to hold onto for the remainder of the match.

The African champions finished second in Group A with six points from their three matches, one behind winners Netherlands and two ahead of Ecuador, whose tournament held much promise but ended in bitter disappointment.

In the other group A match, Netherlands eased past already eliminated World Cup hosts Qatar 2-0 to top Group A and reach the knockout stages after Cody Gakpo netted his third goal in three games.

With late arrivals filling the stands just after kickoff, the Qataris had a couple of corners and threatened on the edge of the Netherlands area but no sooner had they bared their teeth than they were hit with a gut-punch of a goal by Gakpo.

Davy Klaassen played an inviting ball into the path of the 23-year-old and he received it at pace, slicing through the heart of the defence before dispatching a well-placed shot past Meshaal Barsham to open the scoring in the 26th minute.

Four minutes into the second half the Netherlands struck again as a cross from Klaassen made its way to Depay and the Qatari defence was caught ball-watching as his shot was saved, allowing Frenkie de Jong to bundle it into the net.

With Qatar lacking the quality to mount a comeback, the Dutch had a goal ruled out after Gakpo was judged to have handled in the build-up and substitute Steven Berghuis hit the bar late on, but they still coasted to victory.