Senegal become first African team to beat England with 3-1 win

Loud boos rang out at the City Ground on Tuesday night, June 10, as England suffered a 3-1 loss to Senegal in a friendly match—marking a historic moment for the West African side and the first defeat under new manager Thomas Tuchel.

Senegal made history by becoming the first African team to defeat England in an official match. Despite an early goal from Harry Kane, the visitors dominated much of the game, exposing weaknesses in England’s setup and execution.

Kane gave England a promising start in the 7th minute, taking advantage of a mishandled save by Edouard Mendy to score his 73rd international goal. However, England’s performance quickly unraveled.

Senegal equalised in the 40th minute after Nicolas Jackson set up Ismaïla Sarr, who outpaced Kyle Walker and fired home confidently. After halftime, Habib Diarra gave Senegal the lead with a shot that deflected off Dean Henderson, putting the visitors ahead 2-1.

England thought they had drawn level late in the match when Jude Bellingham scored from a corner, but the goal was disallowed due to a handball by Levi Colwill. In stoppage time, Cheikh Sabaly finished off a quick counterattack to make it 3-1, sealing Senegal’s memorable victory.

After the match, Kane admitted the team lacked intensity and urgency: “We’re not going to panic, but we know we need to do better. We’ve lost that aggressive nature that we’ve had.”

The loss is a blow to Tuchel, who had already criticised his squad’s mentality after their narrow win over Andorra. This latest result raises doubts about England’s readiness for upcoming competitive fixtures.

Other International Results:

• Netherlands 8-0 Malta: Memphis Depay scored twice, tying Robin van Persie’s all-time record with 50 goals.
• Austria 4-0 San Marino
• Romania 2-0 Cyprus
• Serbia 3-0 Andorra
• Latvia 1-1 Albania
• Finland vs Poland was paused due to a medical emergency; Finland led 2-1 when play resumed.