South Africa produced one of the major upsets in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d’Ivoire 2023 after knocking Morocco out with a 2-0 win in the round of 16.

The first half saw few goalscoring opportunities being created.

The Atlas Lions of Morocco got the best chance of the first half but saw their goal being disallowed by the VAR.

The second half was opposite to what the first half provided in-terms of drama and goals.

South Africa took the lead in the 57th minute when striker Evidence Makgopa connected to a pass inside the 18-yard box to hit the ball into the bottom right corner of the net.

After going down, Morocco had just one mission, to equalize. This led to the introduction more forwards.

Morocco were awarded a penalty in the 83rd minute when a ball hit the hands of Teboho Mokoena in the South African 18-yard box and a penalty was awarded after VAR review.

Achraf Hakimi stepped up to convert but he ended up hitting the ball against the crossbar and his effort went off the pitch.

Huge relief it was for South Africa after the miss but the pressure was still on them.

Sofyan Amrabat was shown the exit after a challenge on a Mokoena as last man and was shown a second yellow, which was upgraded to a straight red after VAR review by referee Mahmood Ismail

South Africa took advantage of the numerical disadvantage and added the second goal to seal the game thanks to a wonderful free kick by Teboho Mokoena.

South Africa will play Cape Verde on Saturday, February 3 at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium in Yamoussoukro at the quarter-finals.

Quotes

Hugo Bross, South Africa coach

“In the first half, we tried to contain them and cut off their passing lines. In the second, the game opened up and we scored. We knew that whoever scores first in the match will have a big advantage.”

Walid Regragui, Morocco coach

“We fought until the end with our weapons. I am disappointed for our supporters who deserved much better. Personally, I felt we were capable of bringing this cup home. But that didn’t happen. I hope my players will learn, especially the younger ones.”

An unfortunate own goal by Edmond Tabsoba along with a second half strike by Lassine Sinayoko were enough for the Eagles to soar over the Stallions at a packed Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium.

It took just 3 minutes for Mali to take the lead after a powerful Amadou Haidara header came off the woodwork, but instead of it being cleared away, Edmond Tabsoba was unfortunate to see his clearance go into his own net.

Minutes later, Kamory Doumbia, who was a handful for the Burkinabe defense almost doubled his side’s lead after a great build up saw him through on goal, but his effort was denied by the advancing Kouakou Koffi.

A golden opportunity fell the way of the in-form Sinayoko to double the lead after doing well to turn his marker to unleash a powerful effort that was denied by the alert Koffi in the 35^th minute.

Carried by the momentum, the Eagles continued surging forward but wasted numerous opportunities as they took the slender lead into the break.

Returning from the recess, Sinayoko capitalized on a lapse of concentration after beating the offside trap to face the keeper and comfortably slot home with just minutes into the restart.

A lifeline was given to the Stallions after Mohamed Konate’s headed effort came off the arm of Boubacar Kouyate for VAR to award the penalty that was converted by skipper, Bertrand Traore in the 57^th minute.

The Stallions eventually gained their rhythm and piled on the pressure, but a resolute Mali defense kept them at bay, as the Eagles soar into the quarter-finals to face tournament hosts, Cote d’Ivoire on Saturday, 3 February in Bouake.

Quotes 

Hubert Velud – Burkina Faso Coach

“I honestly have no one to blame. We lost

+against a better side. Mali have good players. We got some opportunities but also introduced new players. I was not surprised by the quality of this team. Very good quality with top level midfielders. Offensively, we saw a great team of Mali and we credit them.

“We will digest this defeat. We have to review and analyze the good and the bad during our time here.

The AFCON is very open for anyone to win. It is one of the best AFCONS in terms of football and organization. It is unfortunate that we will not participate any further”.

Eric Chelle – Mali Coach

“We need to be humble in our victory and continue with hard work. I am very happy for the players. They deserve to the victory because they are a group of hard workers. I think victory was well deserved but the lesson learnt is that 2-0 can be a dangerous score against a determined team.

“I have some friends and former teammates in our next opponent so this will also be an interesting fixture for me.

“We know that it will be difficult against them, but we will bring our quality and give it our best against them. I want to emphasize the importance of humility in this victory”.

A dejected Senegal boss Aliou Cisse says it was “tough to see the players cry” in the locker room after their shock penalty shootout defeat by Cote d’Ivoire in the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations last 16.

The reigning champions were dumped out 5-4 on penalties by the tournament hosts on Monday following a dramatic 1-1 draw after extra time.

“I am disappointed after this result, especially for our players. We came here to retain the title and play for our people,” rued Cisse.

The coach said losing in such fashion after dominating the match made the pain worse.

“It’s tough to see the players cry in the locker room. The match was strange and complicated; we could have won,” Cisse noted.

Senegal led until the 86th minute when Franck Kessie equalized from the penalty spot. And Cisse felt his side failed to manage the game well enough when it mattered most.

“We lost on penalties; we kept our lead until the last 5 minutes. I am disappointed after this defeat, especially after our performance and from the first match,” he lamented.

With Senegal’s trophy defense now over, Cisse acknowledged changes are inevitable as the team looks to rebuild.

“We need to make changes after this defeat; we’ll see what happens in the future. There is sorrow, and our players are sad, as is the Senegalese people,” the coach admitted.

However, Cisse took pride in Senegal’s undefeated group stage campaign. “We prepared well and let’s not forget we have 3 wins in 3 matches,” he added.

After falling short of retaining their title in dramatic fashion, Cisse knows Senegal must pick themselves up and work to bounce back stronger.