A profile of Senegal ahead of the African Cup of Nations - including past record, recent form and information on their players and coach.

PAST RECORD

Senegal lost on penalties in the 2002 final, the same year they became only the second African side to make it to the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

Senegal have reached the Cup of Nations semi-finals three times, in 1965, 1990 and at the last finals in Egypt in 2006. When they hosted the Cup in 1992, they were beaten in the quarter-finals.

RECENT FORM

Senegal went unbeaten for nine successive games in 2007, scoring 22 times before they lost their final international of last year against Morocco in Paris in November.

COACH

Polish-born coach Henryk Kasperczak returns to take charge at his fifth finals, having been appointed Senegal coach in September 2006.

Kasperczak, 61, was coach of the Ivory Coast at the 1994 finals, Tunisia two years later, Morocco in 2000 and Mali when they hosted the 2002 finals.

After concluding his playing career in France, Kasperczak coached at Metz, St Etienne, Racing Strasbourg, Montpellier, Lille and Bastia. He has also coached in his native Poland and in China.

Kasperczak previously held the record for most number of matches coached at the Cup finals, but it was broken by Frenchman Claude LeRoy in 2006.

PLAYERS

Mamadou Niang's goalscoring form at French club Marseille this season has catapulted him into the role of leading Senegal's attack alongside the Bolton Wanderers striker El Hadji Diouf.

El Hadji Diouf is one of players still in the Senegal squad from the team that reached the 2002 Cup of Nations final. The others are goalkeeper Tony Sylva; defenders Lamine Diatta and Ferdinand Coly; midfielder Pape Bouba Diop and Henri Camara up front.

Senegal's strength is an imposing midfield where Portsmouth's Bouba Diop is supported by the large frame of Moustapha Bayal Sall.

French-born Diomansy Kamara battled to break into Senegal's side when he was first called up, but a six million-pound move in July to Fulham is evidence of his rapid progress into a key international player.

SQUAD

Goalkeepers: Tony Sylva (Lille), Bouna Coundoul (Colorado Rapids), Cheikh Tidiane Ndiaye (Creteil)

Defenders: Habib Beye (Newcastle United), Ibrahima Faye (Troyes), Guirane Ndaw (Sochaux), Abdoulaye Diagne Faye (Newcastle United), Ibrahima Sonko (Reading), Mohamed Adama Sarr (Standard Liege), Souleymane Diawara (Bordeaux), Lamine Diatta (no team)

Midfielders: Bayal Sall (St-Etienne), Pape Bouba Diop (Portsmouth), Ousmane Ndoye (Academica Coimbra), Malick Ba (Basel), Pape Waio Ndiaye (Genoa), Babacar Gueye (Metz), Diomansy Kamara (Fulham), Frederic Mendy (Bastia)

Strikers: El Hadji Diouf (Bolton Wanderers), Mamadou Niang (Olympique Marseille), Henri Camara (West Ham United), Modou Sougou (Uniao Leiria)

Reuters