The sizeable Polish contingent appeared wherever the eyes raced. The Spartak Stadium, with its red seats, became redder – as if that was even possible – from the scarlet and white colours of Poland. The banners, scarves, and jerseys of Polish fans had an overpowering impact on the atmosphere. Only in patches did the Poles not appear among the 44,190-strong crowd.
It was a strange sight for a match at a neutral venue. But the World Cup is not an equalising force. Visiting the host country during a tournament is beyond the means of most, even if your national side is a participant. This is why Polish fans, on account of proximity and cheap travel, could make their presence felt. Their opponent Senegal had only about 1000 fans in attendance, and that too was a generous estimate.
This created a scenario which is an unlikely sight at the World Cup. Poland’s national anthem brought passionate singing from all corners of the stadium; when it was Senegal’s turn to sing, the Polish fans clapped in unison to drown the anthem out. If that was supposed to hurt the Senegalese side’s morale, it did not work – the West Africans started their campaign with an impressive win.
Sixteen years on from its historic run to the World Cup quarterfinal, Senegal is back with a flourish to the tournament which put it on the football map. This is only the second appearance by the Lions of Teranga, as they are affectionately known, at the World Cup; their previous participation saw them register one of the biggest shocks in history when they defeated defending champion France on the opening day of the 2002 tournament.
On Tuesday, inevitable comparisons were made with that famous win but coach Aliou Cisse would not jump on that bandwagon. While acknowledging the importance of a winning start, Cisse remarked, “Not the same thing, not the same taste. France and Senegal have a history, France colonised Senegal, so when we faced France as opening match, that was quite exceptional. We were immigrants, many (21 of a 23-member squad) of us played in France.”
In fact, some of them could have even turned out for France and regarded France as their team when Senegal was not playing. Aliou Cisse was also among those who owed his football career to the time spent in France. Captain of the 2002 history-making team, Cisse knows better than most that the victory over Poland cannot be placed on the same pedestal.