Senegal wins the Africa Cup for the first time: "I've won many titles, but this is number one"

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Sadio Mané: »The best day of my life«

Photo: CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP

Sadio Mané had disappeared.

After Senegal's star player converted the decisive penalty and made the nation Africa Cup of Nations winners, the team-mates buried themselves, eight, nine, ten athletes piled over the prone attacker.

Moments later, free again as the cheering team-mates moved on, TV footage showed Mané striding across the turf of the stadium in Cameroon's capital, Yaoundé.

He was looking for Egypt's exceptional player Mohamed Salah.

Mané put an arm around Salah.

He got very close to him, and then he spoke into his ear for four, five, six seconds.

Sadio Mané and Mo Salah know each other very well, they are teammates at Liverpool FC, together they won the Champions League, the championship, and scored a number of goals on each other.

In Yaoundé they were opponents for the first time.

The two biggest, best players on the continent, the leaders of their teams, in a head-to-head duel.

It was 0-0 in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations after 90 and 120 minutes, Senegal won 4-2 on penalties, Mané scored, Salah didn't – he was supposed to be the Egyptians' fifth shooter, but couldn't make it.

»This is more important than anything else«

"I've won many titles, but this one is number one," Mané said after the final.

“The first title with my country, that's more important than anything else.

This is the best day of my life.«

The Senegalese have already reached the final of the competition twice.

In 2002 they lost to Cameroon on penalties.

And in 2019, at the last edition, they lost 1-0 to Algeria in Cairo.

Before that final, Mané had won the Champions League.

Even then he said he would swap the premier class title for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Now Mané has his trophy with Senegal, the first time the nation has won a major international title.

Senegal is a worthy winner, no one can doubt that.

The team struggled in the group stage, not losing a game but winning only one, and progressing to the knockout stage with 1-0 goals and five points.

There, however, they swept away their opponents, 2-0 against Cape Verde, 3-1 against Equatorial Guinea, 3-1 against Burkina Faso.

Egypt did not win any of their games after 90 minutes from the round of 16.

Morocco were beaten in extra time while the games against Ivory Coast and Cameroon were decided on penalties.

The outstanding man was goalkeeper Gabaski, the 33-year-old made himself the hero of penalties and was by far the best keeper in the tournament, which was full of strong keeper.

In the final, too, he saved a penalty kick in regular time, in the 7th minute: against Sadio Mané.

On penalties, he fended off the attempt by Bayern professional Bouna Sarr.

During the penalty shoot-out, Gabaski used a water bottle with lots of little pieces of paper stuck to it.

After the game he apparently left the bottle, a journalist grabbed the vessel and filmed it.

You could see the names and shirt numbers of the Senegalese footballers, a goal and markings inside it - the slips of paper apparently showed the keeper where the kickers had last shot their penalties.

Gabaski, who does not play for a European Champions League club, but in his home country of Egypt, seemed inconsolable after the final whistle, with tears in his eyes he was then asked for an interview - he had to accept the award as player of the game.

He was actually asked how it felt to receive the award.

You can guess the answer.

His counterpart, Édouard Mendy from Chelsea FC, was naturally happier when asked for an interview.

Like Mané, Mendy recently won the Champions League, and he triumphed with Thomas Tuchel last summer.

He saved a penalty against Egypt and that was enough to win.

"We're proud," he said.

'We've never won.

We worked really hard for this title and now we've got it, as a group and as a country."