Senegal defeated West African neighbors The Gambia by 2-0 on Saturday to win their first ever U20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title.
Souleymane Faye and Mamadou Camara made the difference at the Cairo International stadium as coach Malick Daf’s team secured another trophy for the Teranga Lions.
Unfortunately on three previous finals, the Senegalese entered the latest knowing they needed their sixth clean sheet of the tournament and at least a goal in regulation time to match up with the newfound Senegal trophy winning standards.
As it was in the semi-final against Tunisia, the Young Teranga Lions drew first blood.
The Young Scorpions got into trouble almost immediately the contest started as Pape Diallo connected Souleymane Faye via a cross and the latter made it count.
The goal was the first conceded by the custodian Pa Ebou Dampha and the Scorpions in the tournament.
Though the Gambia had some control of affairs the more incisive moves were made by their neighbors who nearly got the second through Faye who met a ball parried by Pa but failed to direct it into the goal.
Senegal organized themselves at the back and punctured most of the counter-attacking moves to take the slim advantage to the locker room.
The Senegalese formula of an early goal worked again ten minutes after the pause when Mamadou Camara headed home the second to send Dakar into another celebration.
Coach Abdoulie Bojang’s Scorpions were struggling to even retain possession as Senegal displayed their class.
A combination of good goalkeeping and wasteful finishing denied the thousands at the Cairo International stadium the chances of celebration of another goal.
It finished 2-0, thus providing the coronation moment for president Augustin Senghor’s Senegal that had to be patient to wait for this moment after in consecutive losses in 2015, 2017 and 2019.
📹 HIGHLIGHTS: 🇸🇳 2-0 🇬🇲
Senegal are crowned #TotalEnergiesAFCONU20 champions for the first time after beating The Gambia 2-0 🦁 @Fsfofficielle | @Football2Gether pic.twitter.com/rlyMTcSXoL
— CAF (@CAF_Online) March 11, 2023
The latest success means Senegal are winners the CHAN plus AFCON titles in Beach soccer and men’s football in the past 12 months.
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