Senegal made history winning their first-ever African Cup of Nations tournament after Sadio Mané led his nation over the line in a dramatic penalty shoot-out against Egypt.
The final, held at the Olembe Stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon, was headlined by the two Liverpool forwards Sadio Mané of Senegal and Mohamed Salah of Egypt going toe-to-toe following four weeks of action-packed fixtures. Across the tournament, Africa’s top players showcased their talents as 24 teams were whittled down to just two.
The final had an eventful start with Senegal talisman Sadio Mané having his early penalty saved by Egypt’s Mohamed Abou Gabal (“Gabaski”) after the Egypt goalkeeper appeared to be taking advice from Mané’s club teammate Mohamed Salah on which direction the Senegal forward would choose for the penalty.
Following an early chaotic start, as the 2022 final found its rhythm it was Senegal on top throughout the match, a familiar prospect for an Egypt team who had battled through two goalless ties to progress via a penalty shoot-out against both Ivory Coast and Cameroon.
Despite their semi-final victory against tournament hosts Cameroon, which would have satisfied even the most modest of Egyptian following their 2017 final loss to the same opponent, Egypt were unable to go one step further as Mohanad Lasheen succumbed to Senegal’s Edouard Mendy which gave Mané the opportunity to seal the win for his nation to which he did not falter.
Senegal Head Coach Aliou Cissé, having missed his spot-kick when he captained his 2002 Senegal side to a loss against Cameroon, will feel a particular sense of satisfaction as he’s the man to finally end Senegal’s historic wait to become continental champions. Total Football Analysis takes a look at the tournament surprises, the underperformers, and how much it meant to the Senegalese people.
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Tournament surprises
Semi-finalists Burkina Faso shocked many in reaching the latter stages of the competition and were navigated through a group of Cameroon, Cape Verde Real Estate and Ethiopia by Aston Villa frontman Bertrand Traoré. However, it was Dango Ouattara who stole the headlines, though, as he both scored and was sent off as Burkina Faso beat Tunisia to reach the semi-finals. That was where the journey was to end falling short to eventual winners Senegal, followed by a further loss in the 3rd place play-off to hosts Cameroon.
Gambia were the runaway surprise package of the 2022 African Cup of Nations as Tom Saintfiet’s team shocked many to reach the quarter-finals of the competition beating Tunisia and Guinea on their journey, before being knocked out by tournament hosts Cameroon.
Yet again, it was Cameroon who broke more African hearts, this time Comoros, who fought their way out of a group with Gabon, Morocco, and Ghana after a superb 3-2 victory over Ghana, with the Black Stars’ former West Ham forward André Ayew sent off after just 25 minutes. That was enough to see them through to the Round of 16, but the tournament hosts were one step too far for Comoros, falling to top scorer Vincent Aboubakar in the 70th minute, signalling the end of their African Cup of Nations adventure.
Underperformers
With Ghana in pre-tournament chaos before a ball was kicked having sacked their manager shortly before Christmas, a sterile and disappointing tournament was not all too surprising.
The real surprise lay within the well-backed Algerian camp who entered the tournament as holders on a 34 game unbeaten run. Led by Manchester City superstar, Riyad Mahrez, Algeria whimpered to a fourth-placed finish in Group E falling to Wilfried Zaha’s (Crystal Palace) Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, and Sierra Leone.
Despite having more touches in the final third than any other team, the Algerians only managed to muster a single goal across their three games
Key Stats
Winners: Senegal
Runners Up: Egypt
Third Place: Cameroon
Top Scorer: Vincent Aboubakar (Cameroon) – 8
Most Minutes Played: Mohamed Salah (Egypt) – 749
Yellow Cards: Ibrahima Conté (Guinea) & Mohamed Abdelmonem (Egypt) – 3
Fouls Committed: André Biyogo Poko (Gabon) – 20
Most Fouled: Sadio Mané (Senegal) – 28
Super Sub: Ahmed Sayed (Egypt) – 7 appearances
Clean Sheets: Edouard Mendy (Senegal), Gabaski (Egypt), Ibrahim Mounkoro (Mali), Mohamed El-Shenawy (Egypt), Jesús Owono (Equatorial Guinea) – 3
Most Saves: André Onana (Cameroon) – 17
Dakar Homecoming Parade “Incredible”
Aliou Cissé’s Senegal team returned to Dakar as national heroes after making history following their continental win, so much so that Senegalese president Macky Sall declared a national holiday on Monday to mark the achievement leading to huge crowds gathering on the streets of Dakar awaiting the teams return from Cameroon with the trophy.
Sadio Mané described the homecoming as “incredible” and stated that firing the Senegal national team to African Cup of Nations victory is the “highlight of his career” and the “best day of his life” surpassing his club achievements with Liverpool including Champions League and Premier League victories.
Thousands of fans lined the streets in an attempt to catch even the slightest glimpse of their heroes as they returned from their triumph in the Olembe Stadium. Cissé dedicated the victory to the people of Senegal and celebrated in style standing on top of the team coach as it drove through the streets of the Senegal capital.
European Influence
As AFCON 2022 celebrates record viewership of over 65 million on some platforms, much of the progress in bringing African football to the forefront of television screens can be attributed to the growing exposure of African stars across European leagues and the resultant opportunities for some of the continent’s top talents. Previous superstars across European football such as Didier Drogba, Yaya Touré, Samuel Eto’o, and Michael Essien who journeyed across Europe’s elite clubs through their careers, have paved the way for an influx of stars to capture the attention of European clubs.
Within just the final itself, the Premier League boasted numerous of its stars within Sadio Mané (Liverpool), Edouard Mendy (Chelsea), Cheikhou Kouyaté (Crystal Palace), Ismaïla Sarr (Watford), Nampalys Mendy (Leicester City), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), and Mohamed Elneny (Arsenal). Whilst other notable participants in the competition can be seen within Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City), Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City), Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace) and Nicolas Pepe (Arsenal).
Outside of the Premier League, African representation can now be seen right throughout Europe’s elite clubs through stars such as Idrissa Gueye (Paris Saint-Germain), Abdou Diallo (Paris Saint-Germain), Papa Gueye (Olympique de Marseille), Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain), Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (Bayern Munich), Bouna Sarr (Bayern Munich), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), and Franck Kessie (AC Milan).
Such strong performances should only indicate continued growth and representation of African talent in the future. Questions will now surely be asked about the limited qualification space for countries on the continent of Africa for the World Cup, as Senegal itself will not be guaranteed a place in Qatar, despite winning the highest honour on the continent, with only five spaces available.
