Ex-Liverpool star Sadio Mane showed his class by remaining on the piss after a harsh penalty decision went against Senegal in the AFCON final against hosts Morocco
21:39, 18 Jan 2026Updated 22:02, 18 Jan 2026
Sadio Mane
Sadio Mane was the last man on the pitch for Senegal following the AFCON final penalty controversy(Image: Getty Images)
The AFCON final between Senegal and Morocco was interrupted in injury time after Senegalese players walked off the pitch following a controversial penalty awarded to the Moroccans.
The final in Rabat remained scoreless for 90 minutes before a late Senegalese headed goal was ruled off for a foul by Abdoulaye Seck on a diving Achraf Hakimi. Moments later, a diving Brahim Diaz earned a penalty off a corner from El Hadji Malick Diouf for a slight tug on his shoulder.
Players from the Lions walked off the pitch and into the tunnel as officials worked to untangle the unfolding mess. Sadio Mane remained on the field and spoke with both officials and Moroccan players before Senegalese coach Pape Thiaw eventually ordered his players to return.
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Thiaw began organizing the walkout when referee Jean Jacques Ndala reviewed Diouf's penalty on the VAR monitor. Mane, who originally looked to join his team off the pitch, opted the stay.
Diaz attempted to panenka his subsequent penalty — taken in the 24th minute of injury time — only for it to be saved by goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
Senegal flipped the script four minutes into extra time when Pape Gueye's outside-the-box strike snuck past Moroccan goalkeeper Yacine Bono for the game's opening goal.
Mane, 33, has long been hailed as exemplary and honorably character both on and off the pitch. He's frequently given back to his nation, including by funding school construction, donating laptops, and even financially supporting the government.
While a member of Liverpool, Mane defeated his then-Reds teammates, Mohammed Salah, in the 2021 AFCON final to give Senegal their first-ever title.
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