The final minutes of regular time in the match between Senegal and Morocco, valid for the African Cup of Nations final, were tense after Senegal coach Pape Thiaw asked his players to leave the field. According to the Argentine News Agency, the Senegal coach was dissatisfied with the referee's controversial decisions in the final moments of the game. In the 47th minute of the second half, with the match about to end, Senegal had taken the lead and were on the verge of glory, but the referee decided to disallow the goal for a supposed foul inside the penalty area. Shortly after, VAR intervened to call the main referee to review a possible penalty in favor of Morocco, where a possible hold on Brahim Díaz was observed. After reviewing the play, the referee validated what VAR had indicated and awarded a penalty to the Moroccan team, a decision that sparked anger among all of Senegal's substitutes and especially coach Pape Thiaw. The dissatisfaction with the referee's decision was so great that the Senegalese coach asked his players to leave the field in protest of what was happening and his disagreement with the refereeing decisions. At the 60th minute, the Senegal team headed for the locker room tunnel, but former Liverpool player Sadio Mané asked his teammates to return to the field to continue the match. Finally, the Senegalese players returned to the field, and goalkeeper Édouard Mendy prepared to stand under the crossbar to try and stop the opponents' penalty kick. Brahim Díaz took the shot, attempting to chip the ball, but the opposing goalkeeper saved the poor execution, so the match continued in a 0-0 draw and went to extra time.
