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After almost a month of hostilities across multiple venues — Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca; Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat; Ibn Batouta Stadium in Tangier; Marrakesh Stadium in Marrakesh; Adrar Stadium in Agadir, and Fez Stadium in Fez — the curtin will fall today at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium as the much-talked about 2025 Africa Cup of Nations ends.
As a result, the two highest ranked teams in Africa face off as hosts Morocco takes on Senegal. There was just a single goal in 210 minutes of semi-final action as the Lions of Teranga squeezed past Egypt, thanks to a late Sadio Mane winner.
On their own, Morocco played out a nervy 0-0 draw with Nigeria before Yassine Bounou was once again the hero in their 4-2 penalty shootout success. These two teams have only conceded three goals in their 12 combined games at the tournament and historical precedent also points towards today’s final being a low-scoring affair, especially given the stakes.
This is because eight of the last ten AFCON finals have produced one goal or fewer and this looks set to follow suit.
Both Morocco and Senegal are extremely robust defensively, as the Lions of Teranga have allowed just four shots, one of which was on target against Egypt while the Atlas Lions were even more miserly, allowing Nigeria just two attempts on goal, one of which was on target.
Expectedly, there will be a raucous atmosphere in Rabat today but with Morocco chasing their first African title since 1976, an extremely cagey affair should follow. The home side have won five of the last seven head-to-heads.
Brahim Diaz has been Morocco’s ace in the pack, leading the tournament with five goals, and he looks the likeliest scorer in this one.
Also, the Atlas Lions will look to complete a golden period with a moment of crowning glory in front of a raucous home crowd. They finished fourth at the World Cup in 2022 — the best-ever finish for an African team, and have been the continent’s best team since.
INJURIES, SUSPENSIONS & TALKING POINTS
Morocco’s Azzeddine Ounahi was ruled out of the tournament with a calf injury early on, while both Romain Saïss and Sofyan Amrabat will play no part for the hosts.
Senegal have no real injury worries, but captain Kalidou Koulibaly and midfielder Habib Diarra are both suspended.
Mané may no longer be the explosive winger that he was in his Liverpool days, but his experience and ability to stand up in big moments make him vital for Senegal. Diouf has been outstanding all tournament, exemplified by his performance against Mohamed Salah in the semifinal against Egypt, where the West Ham United defender’s aggression and eagerness to win the ball early stood out.
Once again, Morocco’s build-up will be focused on Real Madrid’s Díaz’s intelligent movement in the final third, and Hakimi’s ability to carry the ball over large distances. That in turn diverts the opponent’s midfield towards the right, allowing more space for the likes of Ismael Saibari to operate. Keeping Hakimi penned back is a good starting point for Senegal, and Mané’s ability could be the trigger for that.
For a second time in his career, Koulibaly is suspended for an AFCON final, having missed the summit clash against Egypt in 2021. Koulibaly injured himself in the semifinal against Egypt on Wednesday, and may not have made it for the final anyway, but for Senegal to miss their captain in a final is a big blow. So too is missing Habib Diarra’s industry and ability in midfield.
Mamadou Sarr came on for Koulibaly in the first half of the semifinal, and Lamine while Camara replaced Diarra at half-time, as Pape Thiaw realised he couldn’t afford for the Sunderland man to pick up another yellow card in a fesity encounter.
Both Sarr and Camara gave good account of themselves in the semifinal, and Senegal will hope for that to continue in the final, but it is undeniably a blow to lose two unquestionable starters for a big final.
Egypt allowed Senegal all the ball in that semifinal, as they sat back, defended and hoped to find Salah or Omar Marmoush on the counter. Senegal had around 70% of the ball in that clash, but they might not have that much in the final.
Morocco are certainly a more capable side in possession than Egypt, and in front of their home fans, they are unlikely to take a wholly negative approach to the final.
Not having the ball might suit Senegal, though. They’ve got pace and skill in forward areas. The likes of Iliman Ndiaye, Nicolas Jackson and Mané could be a greater threat in a game where they are certain to have more space to run into, rather than the tight, cagey affair that the Egypt semifinal became.
But Senegal will be a threat because of some individual players. For example, since his AFCON debut, no player has been involved in more actions directly leading to goals than Mané. He’s now not the player that he was in 2019 or 2021, but he’s still so important to the Senegalese cause.
Only Idrissa Gueye, with 128, has made more appearances for the Senegal national than Mané’s 125. Only Henri Camara, with 29, has even half of Mané’s 53 goals. He is Senegal’s greatest ever footballer, he is one of Africa’s best ever and a second AFCON title would only further enrich his legacy.
He’ll need some help from his teammates against the strongest side that Senegal will face in the competition, but both Mané and his teammates are capable of spoiling the Moroccan party in Rabat on Sunday.
Speaking to CAFonline ahead of the final, Manè said the final couldn’t have been tougher.
“It is the height of it playing against a huge favourite like Morocco. It cannot come more difficult than this but we are ready.
“We are prepared to defend the whole of Senegal and the trust is on us to do that. We have their mandate and their support to bring the cup home,” he said.
For Moroccan captain, Hakimi, this is a chance they won’t want to lose before their fans.
“This is a big moment for Moroccan football,” he told the local media.
“The whole country is behind us and we will not let them down against Senegal. We have come a long way to believe that we are going to finish the good job in the final.”
Walid Regragui, the coach of the Atlas Lions, speaks on the match, calling it a superb matchup.
“It’s a superb final with the best African teams of the last three years. A fantastic team and a golden people, brothers of Morocco. It’s a superb match-up,” said Regragui.
“We had three days to recover. It’s a fifth-to-fifth tie. It’s the first time we’ve faced them in a final.”
Discussing their victory against Nigeria, he said: “They’re an athletic team, they ran a lot. But they had two shots, one of which was on target. It just goes to show, we’ve been talking about the defense for three years now.”
He added: “We closed down the angles of positioning, the transitions. It was tough, I won’t lie. What interests me is self-esteem. It can be perceived as arrogance. I don’t expect people to give me anything.
“No one can erase what I’ve done before. The most important thing is that Morocco is in the final. I need to focus on bringing it home together.”
Regragui continued: “What matters to us is celebrating the win (against Nigeria), but we’ve prepared for this final.
“Well done to the medical staff who never stop. Nigerian match was a victory for everyone. Recovery has been done, so we are ready mentally and physically.”
His opposite number, Paper Thiaw of Senegal, has said focus would give them edge, even as he also acknowledged the difficulty match ahead of them later today.
“Playing against the host and of course one of the best teams in Africa is a big task for us but we hope to focus on every detail, even in the field,” he said.
“We know Morocco is a good side but we are also not going to give them space to operate so much. It is going to be a match that a single.mistake could be costly. So we are going to pay attention until the final whistle,” he said.
Speaking of their semifinal win over Egypt, Thiaw congratulated the Pharaohs, even as he also congratulated his players for over iming the serial African champions.
“I would like to congratulate the Senegalese national team players, and especially our legend Sadio Mane, who decided the match in our favor.”
“We must also commend the great Egyptian national team and acknowledge that they performed well. As I said a day before the match, they are the best team in Africa in terms of their historical record. Now we have reached the final as we aimed, and we must focus in order to win the title.”
Meanwhile, beyond the final, the talking point has been Morocco’s ability to match the event with hospitality, providing facilities that would.make some European countries go green with envy. To the CAF President, Motsepe, this is a win for the entire continent.
No matter who will eventually replace Cote d’Ivoire, as African champions, the seamless and state-of-the-art facilities provided by Morocco is a testament to what a country intent on building a thriving and economically vibrant sports ecosystem should be.
