Sadio Mané's goal in the 88th minute denied Mohamed Salah's Egypt and secured Senegal's place in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) final. This match was a testament to Mané's prowess, as he not only scored the winning goal but also played a pivotal role in Senegal's shootout victory over Egypt in the 2021 Afcon final. In the 2022 World Cup qualifying playoff, Salah missed his penalty, and Mané stepped up to score the winning penalty. This time, the match didn't go to penalties, but Mané's goal in the dying minutes was enough to secure Senegal's victory.
The semi-final was a tense and physical affair, with both teams displaying a lack of attacking ambition. Egypt, with their deep-lying central defenders and midfielders, struggled to create clear chances, despite having two-thirds of the ball. Senegal, on the other hand, worked the ball around the edge of the box, and eventually, Lamine Camara's shot hit Hamdy Fathy and spun to Mané, who controlled it and hit a ferocious snapshot past Mohamed El Shenawy. Egypt appealed for handball and offside, but the goal stood, and Egypt were out, having never really given themselves a chance.
Since their return to the Cup of Nations in 2017, Egypt have been masters of killing games, which made their 3-2 victory over Côte d'Ivoire in the quarter-final seem so striking. This was more like the golden age of Hassan Shehata's Egypt, when they won three straight Cups of Nations between 2006 and 2010. However, this was more like the worst of Egypt's knockout ties as they ground their way to the 2017 and 2021 finals.
The first half was dreadful, with little more than a string of stoppages and very brief passages of football. Egypt's Hossam Abdelmaguid and Senegal's Kalidou Koulibaly both ruled themselves out of a potential final with early fouls, and Koulibaly was then forced off with injury. The game had been billed as another chapter in the ongoing rivalry between Salah and Mané, and although neither was much involved, there was a moment seven minutes before the break in which the Liverpool forward clipped his former clubmate's heel.
The introduction of Trézéguet at half-time was a gesture of aggressive intent from Hassan. However, Egypt's lack of ambition and reluctance to trust the abilities of Salah, Omar Marmoush, and Emam Ashour laid the oath for the fate that befell them. Mané prevailed again, and Senegal will not care, and nor should they.
