I remembered walking through the Big Apple, watching as Senegalese rickshaw drivers gathered around to watch the game on their phone, and as Algerian street vendors cried in mirth seeing their team win the trophy after 29 years. And I realized that, apart from the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, there wasn't a better place in the world to watch the AFCON Final than New York City.
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) on Monday said it will initiate file complaints before FIFA and CAF (Africa football confederation) after the Africa Cup of Nations final went to extra time after finishing 0-0 in a chaotic end that saw Senegal players walk off the field when host Morocco was awarded a stoppage-time penalty. The federation said on its website that the withdrawal was "accompanied by incidents"
Image source, Getty Images In a controversy-filled Africa Cup of Nations final, Brahim Diaz's attempt to bring some calm only added to the chaos. Around 17 minutes passed between Morocco being awarded a penalty, deep into stoppage time, and Diaz beginning his run-up. The Real Madrid forward slowed as he approached the ball and dinked the ball down the middle but goalkeeper Edouard Mendy didn't move, comfortably caught it and the game went to extra-time with Senegal emerging victorious.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Arsenal missed the opportunity to go nine points clear at the top of the table with a 0-0 draw away at Nottingham Forest. The Gunners missed several opportunities to take the lead, but the main talking point was a penalty incident that was cleared by VAR following a brief check. Mikel Arteta spoke very strongly about the handball incident at full-time.
Sometimes a tournament's greatest strength can be its greatest weakness. In part because of the excellent playing conditions, this has been an Africa Cup of Nations devoid of shocks. The better teams keep winning. There has been a lot of good football, but not a huge amount of memorable football. And the consequence is that, in the final, we have the two best teams, or certainly the best team in north Africa against the best team in sub-Saharan Africa:
This year's Africa Cup of Nations, or Afcon, has been dominated by the continent's big teams. Mohammed Salah and Victor Osimhen helped Nigeria and Egypt reach the semi-finals, while the likes of Achraf Hakimi and Sadio Mane will face off when hosts Morocco take on Senegal in the final. With Africa's superstars seemingly in top form, can they keep it up at this summer's World Cup - and could an African nation finally go all the way,
More than any other continental tournament, there is always a sense with the Africa Cup of Nations that it is a referendum on the continent's football generally. Perhaps it's because so many of the players are familiar to those who habitually watch the European leagues or the Champions League, but the question is less about individual quality of players that is a given than it is about organisation and structures.
