Senegal — Iraq: Numbers That Read Like Indictment

The key finding is brutal: this was not a 5–0 built on chaos, but a 5–0 built on control so complete that nearly every metric points in the same direction and still leaves Iraq looking fortunate.

The xG Gap Was A Warning Label

Senegal posted 3.1 xG to Iraq’s 0.18, a gap of 2.92. That alone tells the story of territorial and chance-quality domination, but the uglier detail sits in the conversion rates: Senegal finished at 1.61, Iraq at 0.00.

So yes, Senegal outperformed their xG. But Iraq did not merely fail to convert — they barely produced anything convertible. An xG of 0.18 with only 1 shot on target is not misfortune; it is forensic evidence of an attack that never really arrived at the scene.

Shot Volume Turned Into Siege

Senegal took 28 shots to Iraq’s 6. On target, it was 12 to 1. From inside the box, it was 17 to 1.

That last number is especially damning. Iraq managed exactly one shot from inside the penalty area across the entire match. One. You can call that caution if you’re feeling diplomatic; the crime lab would call it absence of threat.

Even blocked shots fail to rescue the underdog narrative. Senegal had 5 blocked efforts and Iraq had 4, which means Senegal still generated enough pressure to keep shooting through traffic while also producing far cleaner access overall.

Possession Was Not Decorative

A lot of teams collect possession like antique cutlery: polished, pointless, mostly for display. Senegal’s 69% was different.

They completed 518 accurate passes from 590 attempts; Iraq completed 184 from 265. That is not just more ball — it is more functioning football attached to it.

The passing totals matter because they support everything else: the shot count, the box entries implied by those 17 shots from inside the area, and the corner count of 12 to 3. This was sustained occupation, not occasional raids dressed up as dominance.

The Goalkeeper Was Busy Because Everyone Else Wasn’t Saving Him

Iraq’s goalkeeper made 7 saves; Senegal’s made 1.

That split usually means one side lived under fire and the other spent long stretches as a spectator with gloves on. Yet even here there is a small statistical sneer: both goalkeepers are listed at GoalsPrevented -0.09.

So despite one keeper facing a barrage and making 7 saves, that metric does not paint him as some heroic burglar interrupting destiny. The numbers suggest he worked hard, but not miraculously hard enough to distort the outcome beyond what was already coming.

Set-Piece Pressure Kept Reloading The Gun

Corners finished 12–3 for Senegal.

This matters because corners are often less about isolated danger than recurring pressure: clear one problem, inherit another. Combined with 28 total shots and 69% possession, those 12 corners show how rarely Iraq escaped cleanly.

There was no statistical breathing room here. Even when Senegal attacks ended imperfectly, they often simply restarted in Iraq’s third like a team refusing to leave an interrogation room.

Discipline Didn’t Cause The Collapse — It Confirmed It

Fouls were nearly level at 10 for Senegal and 11 for Iraq. Yellow cards were also level at 2 each.

That removes one easy excuse: this wasn’t a game decided by wildly uneven foul counts or persistent cynical disruption from one side alone. But then comes the red card: Iraq had 1, Senegal had none.

Given how lopsided everything else already was — possession, passing volume, shots, shots on target, box shots, corners — the dismissal looks less like a plot twist and more like paperwork filed after structural failure had already begun.

The Cleanest Summary Is Also The Darkest

Senegal didn’t just win every major category; they won them in ways that connect logically. More possession led to more passes completed; more control led to more corners; more pressure led to more shots; better access led to more box shots; better chances produced 3.1 xG; better finishing turned that into five goals.

Iraq’s line is colder: 31% possession, 184 accurate passes, 6 shots, just 1 on target, just 1 from inside the box, and only 0.18 xG with a conversion rate of zero.

Some defeats hide behind variance. This one signed its own confession in numbers.