Senegal defeat Egypt to win its first-ever Africa Cup of Nations

Sadio Mané scores Africa Cup winner in penalty shoot-out

Senegal, ranked 20th in the world, edged 45th ranked Egypt 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out after a goalless final to win their first-ever Africa Cup of Nations trophy.

Mohamed Salah was unable to make the difference for underdogs Egypt who, despite the brilliance of goalkeeper Gabaski, missed two penalties in the crucial shootout to hand Senegal the advantage.

Senegal’s talisman Sadio Mané stepped up to take the winning penalty, which finally secured the trophy for the Lions of Teranga in their third attempt after losses in both the 2002 and 2019 finals.

Senegal fire on all cylinders

The tournament favorites wasted no time making their mark on the game, winning a penalty in the fourth minute as Saliou Ciss was tripped in the box.

Mané stepped up to take the penalty, but his powerful shot was straight down the middle  where Egypt’s semi-final hero Gabaski was able to parry the effort wide.

After the eventful opening, the game grew tense and claustrophobic, neither side giving the other room to attack or string passes together in the final third.

This pattern continued into the second half, until the Lions of Teranga came close with consecutive efforts in the 50th and 54th minutes. Their relentless offense looked likely to break the deadlock, but Gabaski produced multiple great saves to keep Senegal at bay.

Egypt counter-attacked well during this period with Pharaohs substitute Mehany heading narrowly wide.

Ultimately the stalemate couldn’t be broken, even after a wide-open, end-to-end overtime period, and for the third time this tournament Egypt took part in a penalty shootout.

Egypt trip at the final hurdle

Abdelmonem missed Egypt’s second penalty with Senegal ahead 2-1, but Gabaski showed why he was nominated Man of the Match, producing yet another save on Bouna Sarr’s spot kick and keep the shootout at 2-2.

Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy stepped up moments later to deny Mohanad Lasheen and that gave Mané the opportunity to win it with a final kick.

With the added pressure of his earlier miss still fresh in his mind, the Liverpool striker whipped the ball out of Gabaski’s reach and into the corner of the net to secure his country’s first-ever Africa Cup of Nations trophy.

The match suffered from an overdose of anxiety, as both Egypt and Senegal have lost in AFCON finals in the last five years and both clearly felt the pressure of the occasion, hoping to avoid the ultimate low of defeat at the final step.

However, it was Senegal who regained their confidence when it mattered. They attacked more frequently and generally deserved to win the tie on the day.

This match served as the first of a trilogy for these two sides, as Egypt and Senegal will face each other again next month in a two-legged playoff for a spot in the 2022 Qatar World Cup in December.

Elsewhere at AFCON, Cameroon fought back from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 against Burkina Faso in the third-place playoff. The hosts went on to win the shootout 5-3 to earn the consolation trophy.

Cameroon’s star striker Vincent Aboubikar won the Golden Boot with six goals, whilst Mané won Player of the Tournament.