Injured Mane in Senegal World Cup squad, racing to be ready

DAKAR, Senegal: Sadio Mane was included in Senegal’s World Cup squad on Friday as coach Aliou Cissé gambled on one of the world’s best forward being fit and ready in time after injuring his lower right leg this week playing for Bayern Munich. Cisse said Senegal’s medical team hoped that Mane would need about a week to recover from the injury he sustained on Tuesday in a league game in Germany and therefore be ready for Senegal’s opening game at the World Cup against the Netherlands on Nov. 21 — on paper the strongest team Senegal will face in Group A in Qatar.

But Cisse also raised the possibility that Mane may not be fit in time for the tournament, which would dash the hopes of a nation that has come to rely on Mane delivering at big moments. “Sadio Mane is a key player in our group. We will do all we can to have Sadio Mane (available),” Cisse said at the Senegal squad announcement in Dakar that was dominated by whether Mane would be in or out.

“Losing Sadio Mane is not something small for Senegal and African football. We have to anticipate in case he is absent, but we still have time to see if he will be fit or not,” Cisse said. “I cannot speak of his absence even if in my head I have to take this into account.” Cisse said Senegal had sent its team doctor to Munich to examine Mane’s injury and the “good news” was that he did not require surgery.

The initial diagnosis was that Mane would be out for around a week, Cisse said. Bayern have already said that Mane will miss this weekend’s game against Schalke in the Bundesliga because of the injury but gave no definitive time frame on his recovery. Mane is the focus of a Senegal team which won their first African Cup of Nations title this year and are rated by many as the