AFCON: Mane’s strike sends Senegal to final, foils Egypt revenge mission

A 78th minute strike from distance by Senegal star Sadio Mané sent the Lions of Teranga to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final with a 1-0 victory over Egypt in Wednesday’s opening semifinal match.

In a tight and tactical battle, the Senegalese icon fired in a low shot from distance past Pharaohs goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy after Lamine Diarra’s hopeful effort ricocheted to Mané.

The North Africans had revenge on their mind years after losing the 2021 AFCON final to the Lions in a penalty shootout, which was followed shortly by a similar elimination from 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Wednesday’s match bore a strong resemblance to the 2021 final with both teams cancelling each other out for long stretches at the Tangier Grand Stadium.

However, Senegal were the team that appeared to be in control with dominance of the ball. Egypt’s important attackers were severely limited by an excellent performance from the defense of the West Africans, with West Ham United fullback El Hadji Malick Diouf shutting down Pharaohs star Mohamed Salah.

Egypt only managed one shot attempt on goal throughout the entire match and as they became more and more tired from the lack of possession, their objective of holding on for a penalty shootout became apparent. But the pressure increased more and more with Senegal probing for ways to break down the Egyptian bunker.

And a moment of unpredictability was what led to the downfall of the 7-time AFCON champions. Following a series of passes from the Lions, Diarra’s hopeful shot created a moment of uncertainty and Mané reacted quickly to the space created by the defelction with a powerful low shot from twenty yards that left El Shenawy frozen to the spot.

A late push came to late for an exhausted Egypt team, who had little left in the tank to trouble a formidable defense. The Lions of Teranga will now await the winner of Wednesday’s later semifinal between Nigeria and hosts Morocco in the final, which will take place on Sunday in Rabat.