Senegal stormed off the field in protest at a penalty awarded to them before they were beaten by hosts Morocco. 1-0 after extra timeand won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), amid comical scenes in the final.
Midfielder Pape Gué scored the winning goal in the 94th minute on Sunday after Moroccan star player Brahim Diaz wasted a chance to win for the home side by slotting home the last penalty in normal time after 14 minutes of delay.
Recommended stories
3 List of itemsEnd of list
Senegal coach Pape Bouna Thiau ordered his players off and they were stunned Sadio Mane who persuaded them to return.
Congolese referee Jean-Jacques Ndala awarded the penalty after a VAR check after Senegal full back El Hadji Malik Diouf dragged Diaz to the ground while defending a corner kick five minutes into stoppage time.
Officials and players jostled with each other as the referee consulted on the touchline screen, and then again when Senegal came off.
Once the players returned to the field, Díaz inexplicably attempted a Panenka-style chip and his soft penalty attempt went into the hands of Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
Senegal’s actions will be seen as a major blow to an otherwise successful tournament, although the defeat continues Morocco’s poor record in the tournament, which they previously won only 50 years ago.
Senegal were initially upset by the referee’s decision to disallow the goal for a foul in the second added minute, when Abdoulaye Sek headed off the post at a corner and Ismaila Sir nodded in the rebound.
After Díaz’s penalty miss, however, a galvanized Senegal goal seemed almost inevitable and they stunned the home fans of 66,526 at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in the fourth minute of extra time.
Mane controlled the midfield and found Idrissa Gana Gueye, who dropped his name to Pape Gueye.
The Villarreal midfielder intercepted the backtracking Moroccan captain Achraf Hakimi as he advanced towards the box, before beating goalkeeper Yassin Bouno with a superb strike into the top corner.
Morocco were restless, especially Diaz, who was promptly replaced.
Nayef Aguirre headed over the crossbar late in extra time to force a penalty shootout.
But a 50-year wait to become African champions for a second time ended for the hosts, who dreamed of winning the title in front of their own fans.
Senegal could have been more comfortable had Cherif Ndiaye not missed a glorious chance to make it 2-0 in extra time, but they held on.
This is their second Cup of Nations title in the last three editions, after defeating Egypt on penalties in Yaounde in 2022 to lift the trophy for the first time in their history.
They are now keen to travel to the United States for the World Cup in June and will be hoping to persuade Mane to play in a second AFCON after declaring the finals to be their last at the tournament.
Any investigation of the scenes during the game will focus on the behavior of the Senegalese team and their fans, as well as any lapses by the Moroccan organizers.
The incidents came at the end of a tense final that saw little goalmouth action – not surprising given the defensive prowess of Africa’s best teams according to the FIFA rankings.
Senegal’s Elliman Ndiaye had the best chance of the first half to be denied by Bouno with a clean through, while Morocco should have scored before the hour mark, but Ayoub El Kaabi headed in Bilal El Khanous’ cross.
Then came the late drama, with Senegal saving a penalty award before Gueye became their hero – remarkably, it was the Lions of Teranga’s first goal in an AFCON final after failing to find the net in any of their previous three matches in the tournament’s deciding game.
It was a painful way for Morocco’s campaign to end and many of their fans left the stadium before the final whistle on a cold and wet Rabat night.
“We really wanted to win here,” Guay said. “It was a very tough match, but we gave it our all.”
Morocco coach Walid Regragui said his side were “really disappointed” for the Moroccans.
“When you get a penalty at the last minute, you can see the win very close, but in the end, football adapts to you.
“We congratulate Senegal, although what we have shown about African football is disappointing, given what happened when the penalty was awarded.”