Senegal lift Africa Cup of Nations after chaotic final | OneFootball

Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 in the extra time of a controversy-marred final to lift the Africa Cup of Nations in Rabat. Pape Gueye scored the only goal of the game in the 94th minute.

Everton’s Idrissa Gana Gueye captained the Lions of Teranga in the absence of the suspended Kalidou Koulibaly while Iliman Ndiaye played 77 minutes in the final. The club also lit up the Hill Dickinson Stadium in the colours of the Senegal national flag in order to pay their tribute to Gueye and Ndiaye.

The finale had its fair share of late drama with Ismaïla Sarr’s goal wrongly disallowed for Abdoulaye Seck’s slight push on Achraf Hakimi in the buildup to the goal. To make matters worse, hosts Morocco were awarded a controversial penalty by VAR.

It led to a melee between the two teams’ players and staff, which also bled into the stands as Senegalese supporters attempted to confront the Moroccan delegation and riot police was deployed, leading to violence.

Senegal walked off the pitch for 10 minutes in protest but Brahim Diaz’s ensuing panenka attempt was easily stopped by Edouard Mendy, forcing extra-time.

Gueye’s thunderous strike four minutes into extra-time fired Senegal ahead and it was enough for them to secure their second AFCON crown.

Reader Comments (23)

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Gerry Quinn 2 Posted 19/01/2026 at 17:17:34

...or walk off the pitch in sympathy for all of them having to suffer shit refereeing and VAR, Mike...

Mike Gaynes 3 Posted 19/01/2026 at 17:26:34

Justice triumphed, Gerry.

They lifted the Cup they deserved. That's what matters.

Billy Shears 4 Posted 19/01/2026 at 17:41:31

At least 2 of our lads come back to us having a won a trophy!

Well played Senegal!... should've backed them... Sigh 😲:⁠-⁠:⁠-⁠:⁠-⁠

Gerry Quinn 5 Posted 19/01/2026 at 18:20:09

Best team in competiton, Mike, but most of the football was tedious and crap passing - however, I did manage to watch 20% to 40% of each game shown live...

Oliver Molloy 6 Posted 19/01/2026 at 21:34:14

Is it my imagination that Moyes looks happily pissed in this photo.

https://www.givemesport.com/everton-transfer-news-john-stones-manchester-city-premier-league/

Derek Thomas 8 Posted 19/01/2026 at 21:50:32

Oliver @ 6;

So we've finally moved away from taking United cast offs - to City cast offs.

No thanks, especially if the agents of players like Stones & Grealish still think they're 26, still at City and worst of all still think that anybody other than City are going to pay them City wages...and thrice no, if City want any more than a token fee.

Just No.

Oliver Molloy 9 Posted 19/01/2026 at 22:05:57

Agreed Derek, no more big money cast offs looking to add £'s to their retirement fund - I don't believe it will happen, and unless City drop way down from their current of Grealish, that probably will not happen.

Everton can not afford huge wages like these lads are on.

Paul Griffiths 10 Posted 20/01/2026 at 01:29:13

'Guard of honour!" Senegal behaved absolutely despicably in the most unprofessional way possible. Pure gamesmanship, nothing else. So, let's give a 'guard of honour' to any club who stops playing when VAR goes against them.

We should be fucking ashamed that our two fellas got involved and that it took red shite to get them back on the pitch. I hope that Senegal get heavyily punished for this with all options on the tables including taking the cup away from the cheating fuckers.

Paul Griffiths 11 Posted 20/01/2026 at 01:37:20

I can't wait for someone to post that VAR got it 'horribly wrong' and was so 'inconsistent' and 'unfair', and then tell us whether or not walking off the pitch and refusing to play was the appropriate response.

Jonathan Oppenheimer 12 Posted 20/01/2026 at 06:18:44

If you take away all the reasonable arguments and opinions about the behavior of the Senegalese manager and players or the Moroccan ballboys or the awful decisions by the referee or the Diaz PK, the last 35 minutes of that match was some of most entertaining television I’ve seen in some time. It was drama, comedy, farce, tragedy, and sport all of the highest caliber.

It’s sad that African football has the reputation that it does, but having watched the match with three Tunisians, they didn’t seem the least bit surprised or bothered by the absurdity of it all.

If ever the football gods were out to ensure justice on the pitch, that match deserved to go to Senegal. Delighted for Gana and Ndiaye!

Paul Griffiths 13 Posted 20/01/2026 at 06:45:07

'If ever the football gods were out to ensure justice on the pitch, that match deserved to go to Senegal'.

So, Jonathan, an experienced referee, you think that Senegal walking off the pitch and refusing to play was the appropriate response to a controversial VAR decision? 'Justice' was done in the end. I hope that you don't referee out of state if that is indeed your position.

Tony Abrahams 15 Posted 20/01/2026 at 07:47:51

It wasn’t VAR, Paul, it was down to the referee, on both occasions, although I suppose VAR could have stepped in and also told him to go to the television screen, (like they did for the penalty) after he had ruled out the Senegal goal?

Maybe because he blew early this might not have been possible, (I don’t know) but what I do know is that if I’d been away with my country, playing in a tournament for nearly four weeks and was in danger of losing to a diabolical last minute penalty, just a minute after having a perfectly good goal ruled out, I wouldn’t have been in the mood to just accept the referee’s decision and get on with the fucking game.

People can agree or disagree with the actions of what the Senegal team did, but there’s a whole bigger picture as far as I’m concerned, because football is slowly beginning to eat itself from within, imo.

Paul Griffiths 17 Posted 20/01/2026 at 08:01:07

Actually, we now have the two fellas on here - the only two - who remind us quite often that their valuable experience as referees allows them to comment on issue XYZ.

So, I'll open the question further and involve Mr. Gaynes who couldn't wait to get the first comment in to say that Finch Farm should give Senegal clowns and cheaters Gana and Ndiaye a what - 'Guard of honour!"

Remember, these are two posters who are not shy to remind us of their refereeing credentials.

So, Messers Gaynes and Oppenheimer, please give a one-word yes or no answer. As 'experienced' referees, do you think that Senegal walking off the pitch and refusing to play was the appropriate response to a controversial VAR decision? '

Paul Griffiths 18 Posted 20/01/2026 at 08:10:52

What a pathetic response Derek - 14 - that addresses nothing.

'High-horse', dear God, it's called rules soft lad and step up from your low horse.

If not one of those Senegalese cheats and clowns did not belong to us we would not even be having this thread/conversation.

Tony - 15 - I thought the pen went to VAR. Sorry. That changes fuck all for me. So you would encourage your lad at Millwall to fuck off the pitch if he and his team don't agree with the ref?

Some people do not agree that it was a perfectly good goal and it was a penalty.

Oh, and on the first '90 Morocco deserved to win.

Paul Griffiths 20 Posted 20/01/2026 at 08:39:12

Apologies Messers Gaynes and Oppenheimer.

So, please give a one-word yes or no answer. As 'experienced' referees, do you think that Senegal walking off the pitch and refusing to play was the appropriate response to two controversial

decisions by the referee?

I'm not a referee. Maybe that is a good thing in summarising this. They were both poor decisions, that much I think we can agree on. There is a view that there was an element of home side favouritism here and while that can't be proven, for obvious reasons, anything involving that slippery customer Infantino might be suspected of being bent. We are not close to the scene of the crime either, those who are, like the Senagalese management may also have had some indication of possible home side favouritism and found their suspicions 'confirmed'. It is known their hotel, training and security arrangements were poor, maybe intentionally so. And of course, in the heat of the moment...

So where that leaves me is that I understand why they walked off but I don't agree with it. The most likely scenario is poor refereeing not conspiracy.

On the other matters, I don't see it as cheating. I don't think trying to put off the pen taker was in their mind (though it clearly was with Mendy). They were just angry and mad, Nor am I convinced this led Diaz to choosing a panenka in a moment of madness. Had he just taken a normal pen and missed, that accusation might have greater merit. As to our players, it was the coach and Senegalese management who drove the decision to protest and leave the pitch in the heat of the moment. The players just obeyed. Mane, given his status, was one who didn't have to follow and it is possible he recognised, even then, the basic truth. Stay off the pitch and lose by disqualification or come back on and have a small chance of a penalty miss. What I think we can all agree with it that it was a very unedifying spectacle and does little to enhance football's reputation. And the Moroccans were not blameless in this regard.

Tony Abrahams 23 Posted 20/01/2026 at 14:03:48

I would never tell others what to do unless I was on the pitch myself Paul, and if it was me playing in that game, then the least I probably would have done is told the ref to fuck off you cheating bastard, meaning he would have then sent me off anyway.

Have you seen the footage of the Senegal reserve goalkeeper, having to stand behind the goal with a towel in his hand to help Mendy, keep wiping down his gloves in the teaming rain Paul?

The ball boys were trying to snatch the towel out of his hand and he had to stand there because when his teammate put a towel through the net, they kept fucking off with it.

I am now of the opinion that football, is definitely corrupt, and believe it’s becoming clearer every season since VAR was introduced imo.

Some people are outraged by Senegal, and some of us are outraged by the way the game has gone because it’s now simply full of dirty cheating bastards everywhere.

Jonathan Oppenheimer 24 Posted 20/01/2026 at 15:51:26

Paul G., I don’t know and have wondered for some time why you choose to pick fights so readily and unnecessarily with people, notably Mike G. Until now, I’ve kept quiet because he can defend himself. But now you’ve turned on me, and disappointingly, for no good reason.

I’m not defending the Senegal team’s actions. I understand their fury, but no, a team should never leave the pitch unless things are unsafe for players or racist abuse is being hurled their way, or something like that. But I get it, and I stand by my belief as a human (not a referee) that Senegal deserved that win.

I can still be as objective as any human referee can be when I do my job at a very high level. And the referee in this case would’ve been justified in abandoning the match and awarding a forfeit, or at least giving a yellow to each player who left the pitch without the referee’s permission. But in a tournament I would’ve conferred with tournament organizers before abandoning the match.

The gist of my point was that it was entertaining television and hilarious, and that the football gods were shining down on Senegal. And I stand by those two points.