The Gabona Stadium in Cameroon hosted the match between the Mali national team and the Guinea national team in the first semifinal of the African Nations Championship for locals, a tournament that was supposed to take place last year but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mali secured its place in the final of the African Nations Championship for locals currently taking place in Cameroon, winning against Guinea 5-4 in a penalty shootout after a goalless draw throughout the original duration of the match. Both teams failed to score, except for one goal that was disallowed by VAR.
Both teams reached the semifinals for the second time in their history in the tournament. Interestingly, their previous appearance was in Rwanda in 2016, where Mali advanced to the final and finished in second place, while Guinea lost in the semifinals to the eventual champion, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mali had previously needed penalties to overcome the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the quarterfinals, which served as a warning to Coach Deany before the semifinal match. Additionally, they will need physical strength and recovery after 120 minutes of play against the Congolese.
It is worth mentioning that Mali awaits the winner of the match between Morocco and Cameroon, which will kick off shortly at 9 PM at the Limbe Omnisport Stadium.
