It’s been a thrilling Africa Cup of Nations, and we have a heavyweight clash in the AFCON 2025 Final between two of the best teams in Africa: Senegal and Morocco.
Senegal made it to the final after a late Sadio Mané goal got them past Egypt a goal to nil.
They’ve been one of the best defensive teams throughout this tournament, conceding only twice.
Senegal have been so dominant in Africa that you have to go back to March 25th, 2022, for the last time they lost a non-friendly match in regular time on African soil.
The host nation, Morocco, survived penalties against Nigeria to get to the Africa Cup of Nations final.
Morocco have become one of the most dominant teams in Africa in recent years, but this title has eluded them.
They have only won the title once, in 1976, so winning it on home soil after reaching the World Cup semi-finals in 2022 would be a massive accomplishment.
These two have never met in the Africa Cup of Nations, and it should be a thrilling final with both teams among the pre-tournament favourites.
In this AFCON 2025 Final tactical preview, we will look at Senegal’s possession tactics throughout this tournament, how Morocco may struggle against Senegal’s mid-block, and the keys for each team to win the title.
Senegal In Possession Tactics
Senegal have racked up a lot of chances throughout this tournament because they’ve been so dominant with the ball.
They have taken 93 shots across their six matches, which is more than anyone else during the Africa Cup of Nations.
Most teams throughout this tournament have sat back against Senegal in a low block, so Pape Thiaw’s side have been controlling a lot of possession.
Senegal have averaged 63% possession across their six matches, the second-highest in the tournament, behind only South Africa.
Because most teams have sat back against them, Senegal have spent most of the tournament in the opponents final third.
When they are in the final third, the main aim is to overload the middle of the pitch to try and play right through the opponents low block.
Their build-up against Egypt was a 2-3-2-3, with Mané and Iliman Ndiaye often inverting into the half-space, giving both full-backs the option to push high.
The result of that creates a central overload like the one you see here against Sudan.
From deeper build-up positions, Senegal will use a 4-1-2-3 formation very similar to what they use in the final third, but not many teams have pressed them high.
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