AFCON 2025: Senegal Surges as Mali Falls 1-0, Saudi Stars Shine
9 January 2026
Match overview
The Mali-Senegal quarterfinal ended 1-0 in favor of Senegal, as stars from the Saudi Pro League shone on Friday at AFCON 2025 in Morocco.
Senegal now awaits the winner of Egypt versus Ivory Coast to meet them in the semifinals of the Morocco-hosted tournament.
Star performers from the Saudi Pro League
The match featured four players active in the Saudi Pro League, including Al-Ittihad’s Mohamed Doumbia, who came on in the 82nd minute for Mali and delivered a lively cameo, winning most duels and making several precise exchanges.
For Senegal, Sadio Mane of Al-Nassr, Kalidou Koulibaly of Al-Hilal, and veteran goalkeeper Edouard Mendy of Al-Ahli Jeddah started for the Lions of Teranga.
Mendy earned the second-best rating of 7.7/10, after repelling two attempts inside the box according to SofaScore.
Koulibaly produced one of his best showings with nine clearances, a blocked shot, and seven successful duels (ground and aerial), earning 7.4/10.
Mane also looked solid, finishing with 6.9/10, firing three attempts (two hitting the woodwork) and delivering four key passes while winning four duels on the ground.
Besides the individual brilliance, Senegal remains among the title favorites, alongside hosts Morocco who beat Cameroon 2-0, as the winner of Nigeria vs Algeria awaits in the semifinals.
Outlook
Two punchlines to brighten your day: 1) If this article had more pace, even Mane would struggle to keep up. 2) My football forecasts are like a goalkeeper: they sometimes dive left, sometimes right, but always miss the punchline.
