Senegal defeated Egypt to win their first ever Africa Cup of Nations title, with Sadio Mane converting the clinching penalty kick after two previous near-misses.
Senegal’s Africa Cup of Nations-winning team, led by match-winner Sadio Mane, was greeted with a resounding welcome home by throngs of fans in the capital city of Dakar.
Mane, who was awarded player of the tournament, scored the game-winning penalty kick in the penalty shootout to give the Lions of Taranga their first AFCON title following two previous final defeats.
To commemorate the victory, Senegalese President Macky Sall proclaimed a national holiday on Monday, and large crowds gathered in the streets to await the return of the triumphant team.
The celebrations continued late into the night when the players were taken around town on a bus parade, demonstrating how much the victory meant to the Senegalese people.
Fans scrambled to get a good vantage point from which to watch Senegal’s heroes return.
The atmosphere was loud as fans waited for as long as it took to see Mane, captain Kalidou Koulibaly, and the rest of the squad.
Goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, another Senegalese hero after making a crucial save in the shootout, is thought to have already started his journey to Abu Dhabi, where he will represent Chelsea at the Club World Cup.
“What is occurring at Dakar today is just wild, I blame myself for not being there,” football consultant Freddhy Koula captioned a video of the happenings.
Senegal had previously reached the final two times, losing to Algeria in 2019 and Cameroon in a penalty shootout in 2002.
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Aliou Cisse, who missed one of the penalties 20 years ago, is now the manager of the national squad that has finally won the trophy.
“This triumph is dedicated to the Senegalese people.” We’ve been hunting this cup for years. After the win, Cisse commented, “Today we will be able to put a star on our jersey.”
“Winning the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon means a lot. Another indication is winning against Africa’s most successful team.”
Cisse was on there to take part in the festivities, standing atop the triumph bus as fans gathered to cheer on the champs.
Senegal had a poor start to the tournament, scoring only once in three group games, but they had a strong claim to being the best in the knockout stages.
In each of their knockout ties, Cape Verde, Equatorial Guinea, and Burkina Faso were all defeated in within 90 minutes, whereas final opponents Egypt required extra time or penalties.
While Mane had an early penalty saved in the final, he made no mistakes in the shootout to deliver a historic triumph, and the result was greeted with the level of jubilation that many felt it warranted.
