The African Cup of Nations semi-final saw two former Liverpool team-mates face off as Senegal defeated Egypt, with Sadio Mane scoring the only goal.
Mohamed Salah congratulated his former Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane after Senegal defeated Egypt 1-0 in AFCON. (image: )
Former Liverpool winger Sadio Mane has praised his former teammate Mohamed Salah after his performance in Egypt, despite his African Cup of Nations dreams being dashed. The Senegalese legend scored the decisive goal to secure his country’s place in Sunday’s final against hosts Morocco.
For Salah, all eyes are on him winning the bronze medal against Nigeria, who lost in a penalty shootout to the host nation and missed out on qualifying for the continent. The 33-year-old will have to wait for another chance to end the Pharaohs’ trophy drought, which has been trophy-less for Salah and Egypt since Angola’s victory 16 years ago.
The Liverpool star will be 36 years old by the time the next tournament comes around. The competition will be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania and is scheduled for June and July 2027.
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Mane told the BBC World Service: “It’s not easy for him, but I wish him the best of luck. He’s done everything he can to lead the team so far. Unfortunately one of us had to lose. I’m happy to be in the final.”
The pair shared a hug before taking to the pitch, but the semi-final was not without drama, with Salah fouling to prevent his former colleague from fighting back, sparking a clash between the two benches.
The Egyptian player was spared sanctions for the challenge as Mane and himself acted as intermediaries to defuse tensions that had escalated in the semi-finals. Mane left Liverpool for Bayern Munich in 2022, but his adventure in Germany turned sour, prompting a move to the Saudi Professional League where he teamed up with Cristiano Ronaldo.
For Salah, it was deja vu as his former Anfield teammate once again dashed Egypt’s hopes, just as Senegal did in the 2021 AFCON final.
Mohamed Salah’s Egypt lost to Senegal in the African Cup of Nations semi-final (Image: )
The game ended scoreless after extra time, with Mane wasting an early penalty and making amends in the shootout to seal a memorable victory. Both Mohamed Abdelmonem and Mohanad Racine recognized their efforts were saved, and a 4-2 victory from the spot meant Salah did not get the chance to save his country.
Salah was exceptional for Oussam Hassan’s side throughout the tournament, finding the back of the net four times. Brahim Diaz was the only player to score more points in the race for top scorer.
The 33-year-old scored in each of the opening four games, then scored crucial goals against Zimbabwe and South Africa before taking a breather in the meaningless Group B final against Angola.
Following Egypt’s semi-final defeat, coach Hassan did not hold back in his post-match comments. “Egypt needs no excuses or apologies. Egypt is great and no one will try to win seven titles like we did,” he said.
“We needed fairness like[Senegal]. The day after the Senegal game, we played on the same field with a team that was playing in the semi-finals and we were surprised by that. What happened to the Egyptian team, what is going on with FIFA law?”
“When a team makes it to the semi-finals, do you celebrate it or torture it? The expectation is that each team will be given a fair break to see a great semi-final, but what happened is three teams got more rest.”
“I told the players to ignore[the chants from the stands]and concentrate. I don’t want to talk about it. We are the Arabs of Africa. Egypt is great, the mother of the Arabs and the mother of Africa in terms of history and titles, and everyone is jealous of us!”
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