AFCON final: Hakimi, Mane face off in Rabat clash

Mane

The Africa Cup of Nations reaches its climax on Sunday with a final showdown between the continent’s two leading footballing powerhouses as hosts Morocco look to win the title for the first time in 50 years when they take on Sadio Mane’s Senegal.

The match kicks off at 1900 GMT at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, where almost all of the crowd of 69,000 will be backing a Morocco side captained by African player of the year, Achraf Hakimi.

The first AFCON ever to start in one year and end in another could be the second in a row to be won by the host nation, with the Atlas Lions aiming to follow in the footsteps of Ivory Coast, crowned champions in front of their own fans in Abidjan in 2024.

Walid Regragui’s Morocco have established themselves in recent years as Africa’s pre-eminent national team, becoming the first from the continent to reach a World Cup semi-final, in 2022, and climbing to 11th place in the world rankings, just above Italy.

However, they have long been AFCON underachievers, with their only title to date coming in 1976. This will be their first final since 2004, when they lost to Tunisia with Regragui part of the team.

Senegal, meanwhile, are appearing in their third final in four editions and are targeting a second title to follow their 2022 triumph, when Mane scored the decisive penalty in a shoot-out win over Egypt in Yaounde. Punch