Senegal 1-0 Zimbabwe: Mane spares blushes of depleted Teranga Lions in final seconds

Senegal got their Africa Cup of Nations campaign started with a 1-0 win over Zimbabwe, as Sadio Mane scored the decisive goal with a matter of seconds remaining.

Aliou Cisse's side were without as many as six "indisputable starting players" due to a COVID-19 outbreak, which impacted the likes of Edouard Mendy and Kalidou Koulibaly.

But even allowing for their absences, the Teranga Lions failed to meet expectations for much of the match.

Keita Balde summed up their performance early on, wasting one of few clear opportunities when shooting over from close range, and Mane spurned another good chance.

The game was largely played at a pedestrian pace in the heat of Bafoussam, but Boulaye Dia sprung into action 14 minutes from time and looked certain to square to Mane for a tap-in, only for Petros Mhari to brilliantly hold on to the squared pass.

Zimbabwe looked set to hang on, but in the final 10 seconds of stoppage time, Kelvin Madzongwe charged down a shot and accidentally handled the ball, allowing Mane to smash home the resulting penalty.

FULL-TIME! #TeamSenegal #TeamZimbabwe With a killer goal by Sadio Mané in the dying minutes of the match, the #LionsofTeranga secure their first three points. #TotalEnergiesAFCON2021 | #AFCON2021 | #SENZWE pic.twitter.com/hmAzL0xl5S

— #TotalEnergiesAFCON2021 (@CAF_Online) January 10, 2022