Liverpool’s forward duo, Mohammed Salah of Egypt and Sadio Mane of Senegal are set to challenge each other for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) trophy tomorrow at the Olembe Stadium, Cameroon.
Salah’s Pharaohs avenged a 2017 final loss to the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon by beating the tournament host via penalty shootouts on Thursday night to book a place in the final in chase for a record eight AFCON title.
Mane’s Teranga Lions secured a consecutive AFCON final following a 3-1 victory over Burkina Faso on Wednesday night and they will be hoping to rebound from 0-1 final loss to Algeria at the 2019 edition which was held in Egypt.
Both forwards have established a bond at the club level and have become a mainstay in Jurgen Klopp’s starting eleven and winning the Champions League, Premier League, UEFA Super Cup, and the FIFA World Club Cup together with the Reds.
Mane believes that his countrymen will benefit from the 2019 experience to emerge victorious on Sunday in their bid to lift the AFCON trophy for the first time. “Experience is a good asset,” Mane said. He added, “We played a final last time, so we have experience and we will try to win this trophy.”
Salah has never hidden his desire to lift the AFCON trophy, he said “Of course, I want to win something with the national team. It’s my country, which I love the most. This trophy for me, would be completely different, would be the closest one to my heart.”
Gotv customers can watch all of the semi-final action from the tournament unfold live on SuperSport Select 2 (which is currently named SuperSport AFCON, GOtv Channel 34) to discover whether love will be lost among the Liverpool forwards for the final come tonight.
