Senegal beat Morocco in a dramatic extra-time thriller to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final Jan. 18, but it wasn’t without some fireworks near the end that resulted in Senegal manager Pape Thiaw calling his players off the pitch.
In the 94th minute, Senegal originally broke a nil-nil deadlock on a header from Abdoulaye Seck that was deflected into the net by forward Ismaïla Sarr to give them a one-goal advantage. However, that was nullified after the referee called a foul on Sarr for pushing off Morocco defender Aschraf Hakimi, a controversial call as many believed Hakimi dove in an attempt to draw a whistle.
Four minutes later, Morocco was again the beneficiary of a controversial call when they were awarded a penalty after VAR (Video Assistance Referee) intervened and ruled contact in the box. Madness ensued.
Thiaw instructed his players to return to the dressing room in protest, many of whom followed suit while Senegal captain Sadio Mane tried to get his teammates back on the pitch. Fifteen minutes would pass before the match resumed, after which goalkeeper Édouard Mendy easily saved Morocco forward Brahim Diaz’s penalty shot.
With new life in extra time, midfielder Pape Gueye capitalized on the attack and fired a shot from just outside the box past the keeper and into the back corner of the net in the fourth minute. This time, the goal would stand.
Minutes later, the final whistle blew and Senegal were crowned AFCON champions.
To borrow an age-old basketball proverb: ‘ball don’t lie.’