Late Mane Strike Sends Senegal Past Egypt to Set Up AFCON 2025 Final Showdown
14 January 2026
Semifinal tension and Mane's late winner
The goalless spell persisted in the opening hour between the Pharaohs and the Lions of Teranga, as both sides guarded their lines in a tactical AFCON semifinal in Morocco 2025.
Senegal finally broke the deadlock in the 78th minute when Sadio Mane found the net, delivering a 1-0 victory and sending the Senegalese bench into celebration.
Looking ahead to the final
With the win, Senegal advances to the final to face the winner of Morocco vs Nigeria. Recent AFCON semis have tended to be tight and low-scoring, a trend highlighted by Stats Foot data noting only one goal in the first 60 minutes across the last nine semis.
The goal that decided the match came from Mane, sealing the win for the Lions of Teranga.
Punchline 1: Mane's strike was so precise, even a sniper would applaud from the stands. Punchline 2: Time for the trophy to auto-fill the page—Senegal in the final, and the party is just getting started.