Senegal beat 10-man Mali to book AFCON semi-finals spot

Senegal welcomed back captain Kalidou Koulibaly after suspension, while Mali also regained Amadou Haidara for the quarter-final clash. Both sides created chances in the early stages, but Senegal gradually asserted control.

The breakthrough came in the 27th minute, when Ndiaye capitalised on a defensive error to score from close range. Mali’s task became even more difficult later in the match as captain Yves Bissouma was sent off, leaving his side at a numerical disadvantage.

After the break, Senegal continued to dominate possession and territory but were unable to add to their lead. The match eventually ended 1-0, sending Senegal through to the semi-finals. For Mali, the defeat marked a second consecutive AFCON exit at the quarter-final stage.

Man of the Match Iliman Ndiaye said after the game: “I am happy to have won this award but the most important thing is that we have progressed to the semi-finals of the competition. We played very well today and it shows that we are improving match after match. I am confident that my colleagues and I will focus on the next match to play at our best level and deliver for our fans.”

Senegal head coach Pape Thiaw praised his team’s effort but acknowledged areas for improvement. “It was not an easy match because we played against a very talented Mali team but we achieved our objective,” he said. “The Mali team has good qualities and they created many challenges for us.

“If we had been more clinical in front of goal we could have scored more goals but what is more important today is for us to have qualified for the semi-final. We will look into our errors and look to correct them for our future matches. We hope that we will be more efficient in front of goal and have more luck in future.”

In the semi-finals, Senegal will face the winner of the quarter-final between Egypt and Ivory Coast. On the other side of the draw, Morocco defeated Cameroon 2-0 to reach the last four for the first time since 2004 and will meet the winner of Algeria and Nigeria. Both semi-finals are scheduled for 15 January, with Morocco’s match kicking off at 12:00 AM and Senegal’s at 3:00 AM (GMT+7).