March 30, (THEWILL) – A thrilling contest in Senegal resulted in a rematch of the TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final in Cameroon. Much like in that game, a penalty shootout was required to separate the two teams, with Senegal emerging winners from 12 yards exactly as they had done in February.
For the World Cup playoffs, Egypt won the first leg at home thanks to an own goal from Ciss four minutes in, and he was involved again four minutes in this game. He won a free kick on the left, which was lifted into the area. A terrible defensive header allowed the ball to find Dia in the centre of the goal, who poked it into the back of the net.
The game became a cagey, scrappy affair from then on. For much of the time, it was disrupted by fouls and injuries, with Egyptian players frequently requiring medical attention. In the first half alone, the visitors were compelled to make two substitutions.
There were flashes of brilliance that lit up the game, but it rapidly settled into a pattern of Senegal attacking and Egypt counter-attacking. This went on for most of the regular time.
Senegal had the bulk of shots but did not produce many good chances, whilst Zizo came off the bench for Egypt and had two chances to score but failed to convert either of them.
Unexpectedly, Egyptian star Mohamed Salah had a quiet day by his own high standards, while teammate Sadio Mané, who dropped deeper from a 10 position on a frequent basis, became more prominent as the game progressed to extra time after regulation time finished 1-1 on aggregate.
El Shenawy kept Egypt in the game with multiple stops in the first half of extra time, with the most outstanding being a dive across his line to save what could have been a certain goal from Ismaila Sarr.
The second half of extra time was slower as fatigue came in and players cramped up. The Egyptians appeared content to settle for penalties, despite the previous result at the AFCON final in Cameroon.
The two sides again needed to be separated by penalties after being inseparable for 210 minutes of football. The first four penalties were all missed, which was a surprising turn of events. Salah blasted over after Koulibaly struck the bar. Before Zizo’s penalty rolled wide of the upright, Ciss’ penalty was saved.
However, El Shenawy dived the wrong way, allowing Ismaila Sarr to ultimately find the back of the net. El Solia evened the score with a spectacular finish off the bar for Egypt’s first too.
Senegal held the upper hand, thanks to Edouard Mendy’s save of Mostafa Mohamed’s penalty after Bamba Dieng converted. It was left to Sadio Mané to wrap up the victory for Senegal and that was exactly what he did, blasting the ball into the back of the net.
Flares were fired in the stands as fans stormed the ground to celebrate with the players, who will go to Qatar in November for the World Cup. It was a re-enactment of the heartbreak from only a few months ago for the Egyptians.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
