Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game.
Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands.
However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
Photo: AFP
The game at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat then went to extra time, and Gueye’s brilliant 94th-minute strike handed them the title.
“We had a feeling of injustice. Just before the penalty, we thought we should have had a goal, and the referee didn’t go to VAR [video assistant referee],” said match-winner Gueye, who added that Sadio Mane had urged the team to come back onto the pitch for the penalty.
“Sadio told us to come back on, and we remobilized. Edouard then made the save, we stayed focused, got the goal and won the game,” he added.
Photo: AFP
The controversial penalty was awarded by Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala right at the end of the allotted eight added minutes in normal time following a VAR check for a challenge on Diaz by El Hadji Malick Diouf.
The Moroccan team vehemently protested to the referee to check the images, but the decision to eventually give the spot-kick was met with fury by Senegal and their fans.
As most of their players walked off the pitch, some Senegal supporters at the opposite end of the stadium threw chairs and other objects, and attempted to get onto the field of play.
Photo: Reuters
They were eventually contained by a large barrier of police and stewards, and their anger turned to delight when the penalty was saved.
The Senegal team had initially been riled by the referee’s decision to disallow for a foul a goal scored by Ismaila Sarr in the second added minute.
However, Diaz’s penalty miss clearly galvanized Senegal, and they scored in the fourth minute of extra time to stun the crowd of 66,526.
Photo: Reuters
Sadio Mane won possession in midfield and found Idrissa Gana Gueye, who released his namesake Pape Gueye.
The Villarreal midfielder advanced toward the box before beating goalkeeper Yassine Bounou with a superb strike into the top corner, leaving the hosts distraught.
They could still have forced a penalty shoot-out, with Nayef Aguerd heading against the crossbar in the second half of extra time.
Photo: Reuters
However, it was not to be for Morocco, who had been dreaming of winning the title in front of their own fans to end a 50-year wait to become African champions for just the second time.
It is Senegal’s second AFCON title in the past three editions, after they defeated Egypt on penalties in Cameroon in 2022 to win the trophy for the very first time.
They can now look forward to the FIFA World Cup, and hope to persuade star man Mane to play another AFCON after he declared that the final would be his last game at the tournament.
Photo: AFP
“The image we gave of African football was rather shameful. Having to stop the game for more than 10 minutes with the world watching is not very classy,” Morocco coach Walid Regragui said after the game, urging his team to “come back stronger.”
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