Sadio Mane kick-started the Africa Cup of Nations in the best possible way, scoring a late penalty to fire Senegal to victory in their opening group stage match.
Taking on Zimbabwe earlier this afternoon, Senegal enjoyed the majority of possession in the match but could not find a way to breach their opponents’ backline right until the dying embers of the contest.
The breakthrough arrived after Zimbabwe midfielder Kelvin Madzongwe handled the ball inside the penalty area, which resulted in a VAR check and subsequent spot-kick.
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Mane made no mistake with his effort, firing into the bottom left corner and sending the goalkeeper the wrong way in the process.
Senegal, who were strong favourites to come out on top, went into this match without a number of players including Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy and captain Kalidou Koulibaly due to a recent coronavirus outbreak. As a result, they were only able to name six players on the bench compared to Zimbabwe’s 11.
But the Lions of Teranga managed to overcome this setback to secure a vital three points in Group B, with Mane’s 96th minute winner handing one of the tournament favourites an early boost in the competition.
Next up for Senegal will be Guinea on Friday afternoon, which will see two Liverpool first-team stars go head-to-head as Naby Keita and Mane battle it out.
Malawi will be the final opponents for Mane and Co. next Tuesday before the knockout phase of the tournament gets underway, with the top-two sides in each group progressing to this stage alongside the four best third-placed teams.
