Qatar knocked out of World Cup after Senegal loss

The tournament hosts slipped to a second successive defeat in Group A on Friday, losing 3-1 to Senegal despite a spirited effort. That loss came after they were beaten by Ecuador 2-0 in their group opener on Sunday and leaves them with no chance of qualifying for the knockout phase after Ecuador and the Netherlands played out a 1-1 draw.

Qatar do still have one final game to come on Tuesday, though even if they managed to pull off a shock win over Netherlands, they can only finish on a total of three points, which is not enough to catch their group rivals. It is a disappointing end for Qatar, who hoped to galvanise the same spirit previous hosts have shown when holding the tournament.