Sadio Mane will cement his status as one of the greatest African players of all time if he can lead Senegal to victory against hosts Morocco in Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final – a match he believes will be his farewell to the tournament.
Former Liverpool star Mane turns 34 in April and has made more than 120 appearances for his country, making his debut against Morocco shortly after his 20th birthday in 2012.
The highlight of his international career came in February 2022, when he played as the Lions of Teranga defeated Egypt on penalties in the AFCON final in Yaounde.
After missing a penalty in normal time that evening, he scored the decisive kick in the shootout, and Senegal – quarter-finalists of the 2002 World Cup – became African champions for the first time.
A huge weight was lifted from the shoulders of the boy from a small town on the banks of the Casamance River in southern Senegal.
“Before I won the African Cup of Nations, I sometimes played poorly because of the pressure,” Mane admitted in a recent interview for the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, as he opened up about the significance of that win.
“People in Europe love their national team, but some people love their club more – Senegal is the opposite.
«That’s why there’s so much pressure, so I just had to win this. It was very important.»
There have also been plenty of lows for the two-time African Footballer of the Year, including the final defeat to Algeria in Cairo in 2019 and missing the 2022 World Cup with injury.
World Cup is coming
But he hopes to make 2026 a memorable one by claiming a second AFCON winners’ medal before turning his attention to the World Cup in the United States, where Senegal will be in the same group as France and Norway.
After scoring the winning goal in Wednesday’s semi-final against Mohamed Salah’s Egypt, Mane announced that the final against Morocco in Rabat would be his last match at the AFCON.
“I hope to win and bring the trophy back to Dakar,” said the forward who has spent the past two and a half years in Saudi Arabia with Al-Nassr, where he counts Cristiano Ronaldo among his teammates.
There is a feeling that the impending World Cup could be the swan song for a generation of Senegalese players, which also includes goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, captain Kalidou Koulibaly and midfielder Idrissa Gana Gueye.
Mane spent much of his international career under Aliou Cisse before Pape Thiaw took over as coach at the end of 2024.
«Let’s hope we can play with him for many more years, because you don’t find a player like him every day and we have to get the best out of him,» Thiaw said of Mane after the victory in Egypt.
“I hope this won’t be his last final; there are other matches coming up, so we’ll see.”
Mané scored just twice in Morocco last month. His other goal came in a group stage draw against the Democratic Republic of Congo. He now has a total of eleven AFCON goals, putting him among an elite group of players to have reached double figures.
With Everton’s Iliman Ndiaye becoming increasingly important and Paris Saint-Germain teenager Ibrahim Mbaye emerging at this tournament, Mane must feel Senegal’s attack is in good hands going forward.
His announcement suggests he is ready to turn his back on the next AFCON, which will take place in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda next year.
If he can deliver Senegal a second title in three editions, cementing its status as a modern African football powerhouse, he will certainly feel his job is done.
Published on January 17, 2026
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