Defending champions Senegal secured top spot in their Africa Cup of Nations Group C clash after beating Guinea 2-0 at the Stade de Yamoussoukro in Yamoussoukro.
A free kick put the Teranga Lions ahead, and Iliman Ndiaye scored a beautiful low goal in the last minute to seal the win.
It was clear from the start that Guinea would make it through. They came in third place after Cameroon beat The Gambia 3-2.
Senegal is the only team with a perfect record that made it out of the group stage.
On Monday, Aliou Cisse’s team will stay in Yamoussoukro and play a third-placed team from Group A or F in the round of 16. On Sunday, in Abidjan, Guinea will play the winners of Group A.
The Syli National finished third in Group B, two points behind Cameroon in terms of goals scored. With four points, they eliminated four-time continental champions Ghana, who finished third in Group B with two points.
Guinea was guaranteed to make it to the next round as at least one of the four best third-placed teams after Monday’s games. Their manager, Kaba Diawara, made seven changes to give his players a break before the knockout stages.
Both teams were excited for this West African derby, but neither team was able to get a shot on target in the first half as they struggled to find gaps. Senegal had a strong team.
An early challenge from Nampalys Mendy on Guinea’s Ilaix Moriba led to a fight between the players. The first real chance of the game came when Mendy hit the ball hard and it went over the bar off the head of Mohamed Ali Camara.
Even though Guinea played tough, they couldn’t find a way for star striker Serhou Guirassy to score. He was making his first tournament appearance after being hurt, and he couldn’t beat Senegal captain Kalidou Koulibaly.
At the very end of the first half, the holders asked for a penalty because star forward Sadio Mane had fallen after a fight with Saidou Sow, but referee Pacifique Ndabihawenimana showed no red card.
In the last few seconds of the first half, Ismail Jakobs started a fight between both sets of substitutes benches after pushing Guinea captain Naby Keita to the ground. This meant that the Burundian referee had to do some work.
Mane missed a great chance to score the first goal early in the second half, when the goal was wide open.
At the near post, the 31-year-old did the hard work by timing his run well and getting around Guinea custodian Ibrahim Kone. However, his shot missed the target and went wide.
They did what they needed to do to win, though, even though Mane missed the goal.
Krepin Diatta sent a precise free kick that Seck headed powerfully into the net. The goal in the 61st minute was the first shot on goal in the game.
After Mane’s well-weighted pass, Ndiaye sealed the win by slotting the ball across goal and into the bottom left corner of the net. It was an old player for Sheffield United.
It was still possible for Senegal’s goalkeeper Edouard Mendy to make a great diving save on Guinea’s best chance of the game, a volley by Morgan Guilavogui.
While Cisse’s team didn’t put on their best show, they did well against a physically strong Guinea team after beating The Gambia and Cameroon easily in their first two group games.
For the first time since Egypt won their third straight Afcon in 2010, Senegal is still on track to become the first team to defend their title. Guinea, on the other hand, will be looking to make it to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2015.
Photo by Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix
