Senegal defeated Ecuador in a must-win clash at Khalifa International Stadium to reach the round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup at the expense of their opponents.
Ismaila Sarr and Kalidou Koulibaly scored for the African champions during the 2-1 who reached the next round despite the absence of their main-man Sadio Mane.
Coming into the contest, Senegal needed a win to progress while Ecuador would have qualified with a draw. Spurred on by the fans, Senegal started the better side peppering Hernán Galíndez’s goal with shots but could not find a breakthrough until Piero Hincapie fouled Sarr in the penalty area.
The forward confidently put away the spot kick to give his side an important lead.
The tide of the game shifted during the second half with Senegal happy to sit back and it backfired in the 67th minute when Moises Caicedo equalised to send Ecuador fans into rapture.
Their joy would last only three minutes as Koulibaly put away a volley after the defence failed to clear it giving them three points which sealed their qualification.
Ecuador, who started the World Cup so brightly, will be left to rue missed opportunities against Senegal who join the Netherlands in the next round from Group A.
The Netherlands, meanwhile, defeated hosts Qatar 2-0 to hand them a third straight loss which is a first in the history of the tournament that a host nation has lost all its group games.
Group A Final Standings:
| Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Points |
| Netherlands | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| Senegal | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Ecuador | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Qatar | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
