The Senegalese U17 team came from behind to score twice in the span of four minutes to frustrate Morocco, which had been in control since the 14th minute and secure the gold medal for the West African nation.
Before the final yesterday, both teams were playing their first ever final, but it was Morocco who would go ahead first.
Skipper Abdelhamid Ait Boudlal escaped away from his markers before beating the keeper to the ball to head home from an Abdel Hamid Maali corner, however, that lead lasted until the 79th minute when Serigne Falou Diouf scored a VAR awarded penalty.
With seven minutes from regulation time, Mamadou Sawane became the night’s hero heading the vital goal to win the junior Afcon trophy at the Nelson Mandela stadium in Algiers.
When Moroccan captain Ait Boudlal was adjudged to have handled the ball inside the box in the 76th minute, Senegal’s turn around occurred. The referee used VAR technology to award the penalty, which Serigne converted.
This equalizer motivated the Senegalese side, such that in the last minutes of the match, they had their reward when substitute Sawane stormed into the edge of the six-yard box to head home, the winner from a corner.
How Senegal dominance started?
The 2-1 victory over Morocco meant the Senegalese have clinched their first ever TotalEnergies U17 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) title in a dramatic finale at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers.
Senegal has now won a third straight continental championship in less than four months. Their local players previously won the Africa Nations Championship (Chan) title at the same site as their victory on Friday, as well as the U20 Afcon trophy in Egypt in March.
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Their senior national team began the continental dominance last February when they clinched the Afcon 2021 crown then continuing with an Afcon Beach Soccer title later in the year.
