Official: Sadio Mane ruled out of 2022 World Cup

Senegal confirmed that Sadio Mane has been ruled out of the World Cup in Qatar following an injury suffered before the tournament.

WHAT HAPPENED? In a press conference on November 17, Senegal confirmed that Mane has not recovered from an injury in time to feature at the World Cup and will miss their tournament in Qatar as a result, which kicks off on Monday against the Netherlands in Group A.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Mane suffered a leg injury in Bayern's final game before the World Cup, being forced off early in a 6-1 thrashing of Werder Bremen, and was a major doubt for the tournament as a result. Despite initial belief from the Senegal Football Federation that the 30-year-old could miss the first few games and still feature, it has now been confirmed that the country's biggest star will miss out altogether.

It's agonising news for Mane, who fired Senegal to glory at the Africa Cup of Nations at the beginning of 2022.

WHAT NEXT FOR MANE? Not Qatar, unfortunately. Mane will instead be watching from the armchair as he attempts to recover in time for the return of club football in Germany.

Watch the latest edition of GhanaWeb Mundial show and Sports Debate below