For Mohamed Salah, it was a familiar and painful script. Once again, Sadio Mané emerged on the winning side as Senegal edged Egypt 1–0 in the Africa Cup of Nations semi-final in Tangier, sealing their place in the final and ending Egypt’s latest title bid.
AFCON remains the one major honour missing from Salah’s glittering career. Egypt are the tournament’s most successful nation with seven titles, yet during the era of their greatest-ever player, the trophy has continued to elude them. The sense of déjà vu was unavoidable. In 2022, Senegal beat Egypt on penalties in the final, handing Mané his maiden AFCON crown at Salah’s expense. Three years on, the Liverpool team-mates were once again central figures, and once again Mané prevailed.
The semi-final was scrappy and tense from the outset, with early fouls setting the tone. Senegal looked to stretch Egypt through the movement of Nicolas Jackson and Mané, while Egypt relied heavily on Salah and Omar Marmoush in transition.
Senegal enjoyed more territory in the opening half, testing Mohamed El Shenawy with a series of long-range efforts. Habib Diarra and Pape Gueye both tried their luck from distance, while Jackson fired over after being teed up by Mané. Egypt’s attacking moments were limited, with Marmoush winning set-pieces and Salah drawing fouls down the right, but delivery into the box lacked conviction.
The first half was disrupted by injuries, most notably to Kalidou Koulibaly, who was forced off in the 23rd minute, prompting an early defensive reshuffle for Senegal.
After the break, Senegal tightened their grip. Lamine Camara’s introduction added control in midfield, and a sustained spell of pressure pinned Egypt back midway through the second half.
Mané’s decisive moment arrived in the 78th minute. After prolonged possession on the edge of the area, he received the ball outside the box and drove a low strike into the bottom corner, igniting celebrations among the Senegal supporters.
Egypt pushed late, with Marmoush forcing a stoppage-time save and Zizo seeing a follow-up blocked, but Senegal managed the closing minutes calmly to book their place in the final — and once more leave Salah watching Mané march on.
