2021 Africa Cup of Nations final

Egypt was placed in Group D, alongside Nigeria, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau. In the opening match of the group on 11 January 2022, Egypt lost to Nigeria, with the sole goal of the match coming from Kelechi Iheanacho.[12] However, the Pharaohs won their next match 1-0 against Guinea-Bissau, thanks to a goal from Mohamed Salah; this match was controversial as it saw a late Bissau-Guinean equalizer disallowed by VAR.[13] Another 1-0 win against Sudan, courtesy of a Mohamed Abdelmonem header, saw Egypt secure second place in their group with six points, behind Nigeria, who were the only team across all six groups to win all three group matches.[14]

On 26 January, they met Ivory Coast in the round of 16, who had topped their group, having defeated reigning champions Algeria in their last group game.[15] A goalless match was followed by a penalty shootout; after Eric Bailly's shot was saved by substitute goalkeeper Mohamed Abou Gabal, Salah converted the decisive spot-kick.[16] Egypt then faced Morocco in the quarter-finals. Sofiane Boufal converted an early penalty to give Morocco the advantage, but Salah scored the equalizer in the 55th minute. Egypt eventually won after extra time, as Salah assisted a decisive goal by Trézéguet in the 100th minute.[17] In the semi-finals, Egypt beat hosts and five-time champions Cameroon on penalties after a goalless draw; during the penalty shoot-out, Cameroon missed three of their four spot-kicks, including the decisive penalty taken by Clinton N’Jie.[18] This victory meant Egypt reached their 10th Africa Cup of Nations final and were the first ever team to win three consecutive knockout matches in the competition after extra time.[19][20]

Senegal was placed in Group B alongside Guinea, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Senegal won their first group match with a last-minute penalty converted by team captain Sadio Mané.[21] However, they drew to both Guinea and Malawi in their next two group matches without scoring any goals. Despite this, they still finished first in their group;[22] with only one goal scored in three matches, they achieved the worst goalscoring record of all teams qualified to the round of 16, scoring even less than the eliminated Zimbabwe team.[23]

On 25 January in the round of 16, they met Cape Verde, which was one of the top performing third place teams in the tournament. During this match, Patrick Andrade and goalkeeper Vozinha from Cape Verde were sent off in the 21st and 57th minute respectively; Vozinha's sending off led to striker Garry Rodrigues being replaced by Márcio Rosa two minutes later. Goals by Mané and Bamba Dieng secured Senegal's qualification to the quarter-finals.[24] Five days later, they comfortably beat Equatorial Guinea 3–1 thanks to goals from Famara Diédhiou and substitutes Cheikhou Kouyaté and Ismaïla Sarr.[25] They met Burkina Faso in the semi-finals. During the match, two penalties for Senegal in the first half were denied by VAR. They nonetheless defeated the Stallions by a score of 3-1, courtesy of goals from Abdou Diallo, Bamba Dieng, and Sadio Mane.[26] This meant the West African nation reached their second consecutive Africa Cup of Nations final.[27]

The first clear-cut chance came in the fifth minute, when Senegal were awarded a penalty when Mohamed Abdelmonem fouled Saliou Ciss in the penalty area. Abdelmonem was awarded the first yellow card of the game in the process. However, the penalty from Sadio Mané was saved by Mohamed Abou Gabal diving to his right.[36] Egypt's first chance came when Mohamed Salah swung in a free-kick towards Mahmoud Hamdy, but it was caught by Senegalese goalkeeper Édouard Mendy.[36] Senegal dominated the first half by playing mainly down the wings, aiming crosses towards their forwards, but none resulted in a goal.[37] Another chance fell to Salah, when he evaded the Senegal defenders and dribbled into the box, but he scuffed his shot, making it an easy save for Mendy.[36]

Another Senegal chance came in the 39th minute, when Famara Diédhiou flicked Ismaïla Sarr's cross towards goal, but Abou Gabal easily saved the shot.[36] Egypt's strategy was to sit back and attempt the long ball, allowing Senegal to have the majority of the possession.[36] The game was also a very physical one and multiple players received yellow cards, including Abdelmonem, Nampalys Mendy, Hamdy Fathy, and Senegal captain Kalidou Koulibaly. The first half ended with a score line of 0–0. Will Unwin of The Guardian commented, "Senegal look like a decent football team, while Egypt do not."[36]

Senegal received a free-kick after Mane was brought down at the edge of the box. Idrissa Gueye's effort however, went wide and over the bar.[36][37] Senegal continued their focus on wing play, but failed to convert most of their crosses. One of them came from left-back Saliou Ciss, which was aimed at Diedhou, who couldn't take the chance.[36][37] Both sides also kept constantly fouling.[36] Egypt's best chance of the game thus far came when Zizo curled a free kick into the box, which was met by Abdelmonem, whose effort went over the bar.[37] Egypt's attacking play improved in the second half, with another chance coming when a Trézéguet cross was flicked wide by Hamdy Fathy.[36] Egypt later won a corner, but it was easily cleared by the Senegalese defense. Egypt stalled the last 5 minutes of regular time and heading into extra time, the two sides were still level at 0–0.[38]

Sadio Mané scored the decisive penalty in the shoot-out

Senegal had the first opportunity of extra time, with a Mané cross finding Bamba Dieng, who's attempt was saved by Abou Gabal. In the 100th minute, Trézéguet received the ball 14 yards away from goal, but had his shot saved by Édouard Mendy. Senegal had another opportunity to score the game's first goal from a corner, but Abdou Diallo's header sailed wide.[36] With Egypt sitting back and playing conservatively, they allowed Senegal most of the chances in the extra time period. In the 115th minute, a long-range effort from Bamba Dieng was parried away by Abou Gabal. Two minutes later, Marwan Hamdy's shot from 16 yards out was tipped over the bar by Édouard Mendy. The resulting corner was dealt with by Senegal,[38] and extra time ended still goalless, meaning the final had to be decided by a penalty shoot-out.

Senegal's captain Kalidou Kouliably was up first in the shoot-out, and scored. Egyptian goalkeeper Abou Gabal went the right way, but couldn't keep it out.[36] Zizo scored for Egypt to keep the score level. After Diallo converted his spot-kick just beyond Abou Gabal, it was Abdelmonem next, who conceded the earlier penalty in the 5th minute. His shot went off the post, making it a 2–1 advantage in Senegal's favor. Bouna Sarr's penalty was saved by Gabal, after he decided to go left. After the substitute Marwan Hamdy scored the next penalty for Egypt, the two teams were level again at 2–2.[38][37] Bamba Dieng scored the next penalty for Senegal. The next penalty taker was Mohanad Lasheen. Mendy dived right and saved the penalty, meaning Senegal needed to score the next penalty to win. Sadio Mané, who missed the earlier penalty in the match, stepped up and scored past Abou Gabal low to the left, giving Senegal both the 4–2 shootout victory and their first ever AFCON title.[36]