FIFA World Cup 2018: Senegal overcome Pole hurdle

Moscow: Senegal punished Poland to win 2-1 in their opening World Cup Group H game in Moscow on Tuesday.

The African side took a 37th-minute lead when Idrissa Gueye’s shot took a massive deflection off defender Thiago Cionek to wrong foot the keeper.

Then on the hour, woeful defending allowed Mbaye Niang to tap home into an empty net before Poland pulled one back via Grzegorz Krychowiak's late header.

Senegal led Poland 1-0 at halftime after defender Thiago Cionek deflected a poor Idrissa Gueye shot past Wojciech Szczesny after 38 minutes.

The error summed up a first half in which neither side had been able to find the composure to seriously threaten either keeper. Mbaye Niang went around Lukasz Piszczek on the flank following a restart and centered to Sadio Mane. The Senegal midfielder passed to Idrissa Gueye, who sent a right-foot shot from the arc toward Wojciech Szczesny’s far post. Cionek, near the penalty spot, lifted his right leg and deflected the ball past a wrong-footed Szczesny. Senegal scored again to take a 2-0 lead midway through the second half.

Niang rolled the ball into an empty net in the 60th minute after cutting between a Polish defender and onrushing goalkeeper  Szczesny to collect a long pass.