Senegal coach Aliou Cisse has bemoaned the defensive mistakes his side made during Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Japan.

Both sides went into the Group H encounter knowing a victory would put them in a commanding position to advance through to the knockout stages of the World Cup and Senegal twice held the lead during the match thanks to goals from Sadio Mane and Moussa Wague.

However, the Lions of Teranga let Japan back into the game on both occasions and Cisse was far from happy with his side’s defensive performance, as he believes they were making mistakes that you cannot afford to do at the highest level.

“Of course there are regrets, but we must say we didn’t see a great Senegal team tonight compared to the previous match against Poland,” Cisse said.

“Despite the fact we were leading twice, what is annoying for me is the two goals we conceded. All I know is at this level of competition with the players we have today, who are world-class, these were avoidable goals. That is crystal clear.”

Senegal still have their destiny in their own hands regarding qualification for the last 16, as they know a victory against Colombia in their final group match on Thursday will be enough to see them through.

The African side made it all the way through to the quarter-finals during their only other World Cup appearance in 2002 and they are priced at 1.60 to qualify for the knockout stages once again this time around.