Heartbreak for Mali as errors and cards allow Senegal to advance to AFCON semifinals

Updated: Jan 9, 2026, 06:19 pm

 

Iliman Ndiaye pounced on a Mali goalkeeping error in the first half to give Senegal the lead, and they never looked like losing it.
Iliman Ndiaye pounced on a Mali goalkeeping error in the first half to give Senegal the lead, and they never looked like losing it.
Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto via Getty Images

RABAT, Morocco -- Senegal defeated 10-man Mali 1-0 in a tepid Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal in Tanger on Friday to become the first team to seal their place in the last four, with Everton's Iliman Ndiaye settling the contest with a close-range first-half finish after an error from goalkeeper Djigui Diarra.

The 2019 champions Senegal, who defeated Sudan 3-1 in the Last 16, remain in Tanger for Wednesday's semifinal, while Mali, who had Yves Bissouma sent off in first-half stoppage time, return home without winning a match at this tournament.

The decisive moment of the match came in the 29th minute, when Diarra, stooping to collect Krépin Diatta's cross from the right flank, somehow failed to take control of the ball and allowed it to bobble past, and under, him into the box.

The onrushing Ndiaye reacted quickest to touch home from five yards and send the Teranga Lions into only their third AFCON semi since 2006.

Mali, who entered this fixture with the worst disciplinary record at the tournament, had Tottenham Hotspur's Bissouma dismissed late in the first half for a second yellow when he tangled with Idrissa Gana Gueye, leaving the West Africans up against it as they went in search of an equaliser.

Whereas the Eagles went down to 10 after 26 minutes in their Last 16 match against Tunisia and were able to battle back to 1-1 before holding their opponents and advancing on penalties, they were unable to find a way back into the contest here, with Senegal going closest to extending their lead.

Mali will feel aggrieved, however, for a massive early penalty call that went against them, when Kalidou Koulibaly -- returning to the starting XI after being sent off in Senegal's final group game -- brought down Lassine Sinayoko with a sloppy ill-timed challenge in the third minute.

The Auxerre forward may have gone down somewhat theatrically, but Koulibaly can feel relieved that the clear clumsy contact went unpunished.

Senegal had the better of the subsequent chances, with Pape Gueye -- the hero of the victory over Sudan -- seeing his 25-yard effort deflected wide, while Sadio Mané provoked a first booking for Bissouma after 23 minutes after wriggling away from the Spurs man, who responded with a raised arm to the face of the Teranga Lions legend.

Tottenham Hotspur's Yves Bissouma furiously rips his Mali captain's armband off after being sent off against Senegal in the AFCON quarterfinals.
Tottenham Hotspur's Yves Bissouma furiously rips his Mali captain's armband off after being sent off against Senegal in the AFCON quarterfinals.
Abdel Majid BZIOUAT / AFP via Getty Images

Mali's discipline -- or lack thereof -- has been a theme for the West Africans during this tournament, and they picked up their third red card of the tournament (no other side has more than one) when Bissouma brought down Gueye with a poor challenge.

Things got from bad to worse for Mali as another influential midfielder, Amadou Haidara, was replaced early in the second half after failing to recover from a shoulder injury picked up after falling to the ground in a challenge with Diatta.

By this point, goalkeeper Diarra had embarked on his one-man mission to keep Mali alive in the contest, saving from left-sider El Hadji Malick Diouf late in the first half, denying him with a magnificent reaction stop, before blocking a Gueye effort from range after the break.

The 10 men of Mali threatened sporadically, however, with Édouard Mendy called into action soon after the break, although Mane forced Diarra into action 23 minutes from time as he cut inside and sent an effort straight at the newly inspired Mali stopper.

It wasn't exactly a redemption act, but the 30-year-old keeper did at least keep Mali alive in the tie with a magnificent stop to bravely deny substitute Pathé Ciss in the 77th minute, and then reacting superbly to touch away Lamine Camara's volley in stoppage time with the youngster already wheeling away in celebration.

Mali, with energy flagging, continued to commit men forward in search of a response, and while they managed a to peg back Tunisia with a 96th-minute equaliser, there were to be no heroics here despite Tom Saintfiet's attack-minded substitutions.

Diarra ended the match having denied Senegal on seven occasions, although nothing could quite atone for that hideous first-half error which ultimately keeps the Teranga Lions on course for their second AFCON title.