Moroccan and Malian football fans experienced a thrilling night on Tuesday as Morocco and Mali faced off in a matchup to determine the team that would join Egypt for the final of the ongoing U23 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Following a fairly balanced, long, and exhausting contest between the two sides, penalties ended up being the only way of settling the protracted showdown as both opponents showed perceptible eagerness to book their ticket to the coveted Olympic Games to be held in Paris in a year’s time.
Last night’s game took place at the Rabat Moulay Abdellah complex in the presence of a large crowd that remained hopeful and optimistic about the Atlas Lions’ qualification throughout the game, which did not end until midnight.
With the Moroccan team having clinched several impressive victories in the group stages, including a 2-1 comeback victory against a dogged Guinean team in the opening game and an imposing 5-1 annihilation of Ghana’s U23 team in the second group match, they were the favorites to win their showdown against Mali.
But victory eluded the fairly superior Moroccan side against a compact Malian team, and Atlas Lions fans had to go through the additional pain of penalty shootout uncertainty to see their team ultimately seal its ticket to the final.
Many have since congratulated Morocco’s team for its performance, with the US embassy to Morocco writing today: “Congratulations for Morocco’s qualification for the Paris Olympics 2024 and for the AFCON finals.”
