Mali imposes a draw on Morocco… and postpones its qualification for the African Cup

Ibrahim Diaz scored a goal from a penalty kick in the first half, then Lassine Senayoko scored a goal from a penalty kick in the second half as Mali imposed a 1-1 draw on Morocco today, Friday, at Prince Moulay Abdullah Stadium in Rabat in the second round of the first group matches of the African Cup of Nations football tournament held in Morocco.
Morocco needed to win today’s match to secure its qualification to the round of 16 from top spot in the group, but Mali did not surrender to the loss and equalized in the second half, strengthening its hopes in the group after a match that witnessed high physical effort and violent clashes between the players of the two teams.
Morocco, which opened the tournament with a 2-0 win over the Comoros, raised its score at the top of the group to four points, followed by Mali and Zambia with two points each, while the Comoros bottomed the group with one point.
Qualification will be decided in the third round when Morocco meets Zambia and Mali meets Comoros.
Morocco excelled in possession and offensive pressure for most of the match, but faced defensive caution and determination on the part of the Malian national team, which held on to the equalizer despite Morocco’s continued attempts and the changes made by coach Walid Regragui during the second half.