Senegal won the Africa Cup of Nations for the second time in their history but the final was marred by chaotic scenes as Senegal’s players left the pitch late in the game in protest at Morocco being awarded a controversial penalty in added time.
After a VAR check, El Hadji Malick Diouf was deemed to have brought down Brahim Diaz in the six-yard box after grappling with the forward during a Morocco corner and referee Jean-Jacques Ndala Ngambo pointed to the spot, much to the dismay of Senegal who had, moments earlier, been denied a goal.
In one of the most bizarre scenes in the history of international football, Senegal’s players — other than Sadio Mane — left the pitch before reemerging after a lengthy pause in play to allow the penalty to be taken, which Diaz woefully missed.
Senegal no doubt felt doubly aggrieved because the referee had blown his whistle for an Idrissa Gueye foul on Achraf Hakimi seconds before Ismaïla Sarr had found the net in the 93rd minute.
In extra-time, Pape Gueye scored the winner with a thunderous strike from distance but the quality of his goal, and Senegal’s victory, will likely be overshadowed by the extraordinary scenes which preceded it.
Carl Anka and Mark Carey analyse the key talking points.
What just happened?
It was a scene that no fan of football wants to see in a final.
It took until the dying moments of stoppage time for the final to spring into life, or rather deep controversy, that hinged on a single refereeing decision.
A late Morocco corner saw Senegal left-back Diouf put his hands around the neck of Morocco’s star man Diaz at the back post. There was minimal contact on the 26-year-old in an exchange that is commonly seen in a penalty area from most set-piece situations around world football. It was clumsy from Diouf but when Diaz threw himself to the floor, he gave the referee a decision to make.
It was a controversial end to what had been an entertaining final (Sebastien Bozon/AFP via Getty Images)
Diaz was enraged that he was not awarded a foul initially, but after VAR advised referee Jean-Jacques Ndala Ngambo to overturn the decision, the touch paper was lit for one of the most controversial moments in football history.
Cue player outrage, cue pushing and shoving from both benches, and cue chaos that emanated from the stands as some Senegalese fans nearly spilled onto the pitch. To say that there was pandemonium in the minutes that followed would be an understatement.
Such was the offence felt by the Senegalese bench that manager Pape Thiaw directed his players to walk off the field and into the changing rooms to protest the decision. It was also fury that was compounded by Senegal having a goal disallowed only seconds earlier, after the referee blew for another soft push from a corner — blowing the whistle before the sequence ended rather than wait for a VAR review to aid his decision.
Brahim Diaz missed a late penalty with a tame effort (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)
Captain Sadio Mane directed his team-mates back onto the field for the penalty to be taken by Diaz himself, only the Morocco forward to step up and strike a tame dinked effort straight down the centre of the goal and into the arms of Edouard Mendy. It was a bizarre end to a truly unbelievable scenario lasting over 15 minutes.
No matter your view on the refereeing decision, this was a disappointing moment for African football as a whole. The scenes were more befitting of an amateur football game than an AFCON final.
Mark Carey
Pape Gueye’s remarkable extra-time goal
After all that VAR-induced drama and protest, it was easy to forget there were 30 more minutes of football to be played. Diaz’s penalty miss lead to a heavy momentum swing in the game; Senegal taking to the start of extra-time full of righteous indignation.
With legs tired, emotions heightened and the rain beginning to fall in Rabat, space opened up in front of Morocco’s penalty area. The 94th minute (officially on the clock, but much closer to 130 if you add on the penalty-related fracas), saw Gueye lead a quick break into the final third down the left.
Pape Gueye celebrates scoring the winning goal (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)
He quickly releases Pape Gueye in front, who unleashed a left-footed shot from the edge of the box that left Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou flat footed, before crashing off the crossbar and in.
It was a tremendous goal, silencing the home crowd, before a section of missiles rained down on the Senegal players celebrating. Poetic justice? Not quite as the grievance should be with match officials rather than any player.
Diaz would be substituted four minutes after the goal for Ilias Akhomach. He looked a man weighed heavy by a dramatic turnaround.
Carl Anka
Should El Aynaoui been taken off?
With neither side able to break the deadlock midway through the second half, there was an unsavoury scene that drew the game to a halt.
Morocco midfielder Neil El Aynaoui climbed to head the ball from a cross, only to head the back of Senegal full-back Malick Diouf. As the 24-year-old fell to the floor, there was a notable panic with players quickly spotting the blood gushing from above El Aynaoui’s eyebrow.
Neil El Aynaoui has his head bandaged after being injured during the final (Abdel Majid Bziouat/AFP via Getty Images)
El Aynaoui received medical attention for eight minutes and 28 seconds for the nasty collision, changing his shirt twice to ensure it had no remaining blood on it. While his wound was temporarily patched up, there seemed to be no suggestion that he would be taken off the field and assessed for concussion — but the nature of the injury suggested that the decision should have been taken out of El Aynaoui’s hands.
The tempo of the game dropped in the minutes that followed El Aynaoui’s return to the field, with momentum understandably lost after such a lengthy delay. That is no issue when the safety of a player is placed as the first priority, but there might have been a very real possibility that both El Aynaoui and Diouf had been more hurt than first thought.
Neither were taken off, but there was little doubt that it was a situation that marred a notable share of the second half.
Mark Carey
A final that was played
“Finals aren’t to be played, they’re to be won,” is the famous line from Jose Mourinho.
The semi-finals of this tournament were tactically fraught encounters that earned plaudits for collective defending rather than attacking ambition. Footballing purists say there is no such thing as a boring game, but neutrals had good reason to believe this final would turn into a negative, cagey affair.
Morocco’s defence has been their calling card throughout the competition and, for all of Senegal’s attacking power, the two sides could have easily cancelled each other out.
But then the game began and you realised both teams wanted to go for it. The first half saw Senegal go close on two occasions, Nicolas Jackson showing his thrilling and frustrating sides in equal measure. Morocco do not always try to be cavalier entertainers, but they too broke with purpose and in numbers when the time was right to attack.
A good way to measure the pace of a game is to click your fingers when one team loses the ball, before clicking again when they use that regained possession to have a shot on goal. The first half yielded no goals, but saw both teams move the ball with intent when they realised they had time and space to play.
Senegal went in at half-time regretting their inability to turn their four shots into a goal. Sometimes, finals are to be played. Everyone viewing was thankful both sides wanted to give it a go.
Carl Anka