FIFA World Cup 2018: Top 5 Opening day upsets in the history of the tournament

#1 Senegal 1-0 France (2002)

El Hadji Diouf ran rings around the French defense

Remembered as the match that sent tremors down the spines of the French fans, the 2002 world cup perhaps showcased the worst title defence. The French side, who were reigning World cup and European Champions, had quality embedded in every position of the team.

The team was led by a vintage Zinedine Zidane, who had just scored one of the goals of the century against Bayer Leverkusen in the 2002 Champions League final. The team also featured the Premier league and Serie A top scorers in Henry and Trezeguet respectively.

Nothing could go wrong, yet everything went wrong.

During a warm-up match, Zidane injured his thigh and which meant that Zizou had to sit out the tournament opener against Senegal. The African team, led by a Frenchman by the name of Bruno Metsu were making their maiden world cup appearance.

A goalmouth scramble during the first half led to Papa Bouba Diop tapping in from close range as the African team went on to create history.

This sent the Senegalese supporters in the Seoul stadium into delirium as the French wouldn’t recover.

The reigning world champions exited from the group stage after finishing bottom and having netted zero goals.

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Which one of these upsets are in your favourites list? Sound off in the comments section below!