The match begins with a balance between the two teams. From the first minutes, Senegal imposed an offensive rhythm, notably with a corner in the 24th minute taken by Idrissa Gana Gueye. Kalidou Koulibaly, with a powerful header, unfortunately saw his attempt miss the Burkinabe goal. The Burkinabés respond immediately with a rapid counter-attack, but their attacker Youssoupha, after controlling his chest, shoots wide.
Despite the loud encouragement of the Senegalese supporters and some remarkable actions, notably a well-hit free kick by Gana Gueye in the 43rd minute, the Étalons remained solid in defense. The first half ended with a goalless draw, with both teams returning to the locker room without having managed to take the lead.
A second act full of suspense
The second half started with a false start for the Burkinabés, caught in an offside position from the first minutes. But Senegal reacted with a good combination between Sadio Mané, Ismaïla Sarr and Gana Gueye, even if the Burkinabe defense managed to interrupt this promising action. The Burkinabés tried their luck in the 53rd minute on an effectively led counter-attack, but Senegalese goalkeeper Edouard Mendy saved his team with a good save.
In the 61st minute, a free kick from Burkina Faso came close to opening the scoring by hitting the post, to the great relief of the Senegalese. For their part, the Lions did not give up, Sadio Mané and Ismaïla Ndiaye trying to surprise the Burkinabe goalkeeper in the 64th minute.
The turning point of the match: Habib Diarra hits hard
As the minutes tick by and tension rises in the stands, Habib Diarra, who has just entered the game, takes things in hand in the 83rd minute. With a powerful and well-placed shot, he deceives the Burkinabé goalkeeper
Senegal
