There will only be one left.
Morocco and Mali face each other in the final of CHAN-2020 *, Sunday February 7, at the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaoundé.
The Atlas Lions, winners in 2018 against Nigeria, can become the first team to win two consecutive trophies in this very young African competition, which celebrates the talents evolving on the continent.
But, to achieve this, the best attack of the competition will have to find the loophole in the Malian safe.
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5️⃣ goals from 🇲🇦 @ SoufianeRahimi2, the 🔝 # TotalCHAN2020 scorer!
🤩 pic.twitter.com/kSRHQaKsTZ
- # TotalCHAN2020 - FR (@caf_online_FR) February 4, 2021
A rise of Morocco
"No selection has managed to qualify or to win two consecutive CHAN finals. We want to make history in this competition," said Houcine Ammouta, the Morocco coach, after the demonstration of his men against the Cameroon in the semi-final (4-0).
The Atlas Lions have gradually gained in strength during this competition.
They won their first match with difficulty against Togo 1-0, thanks to a penalty goal from Yahya Jehane, before conceding a draw against Rwanda.
After trailing in the first half, the Moroccans raised their attacking potential in the second half with four goals in 45 minutes, including a brace from young center forward Soufiane Rahimi, current top scorer in the competition.
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5️⃣ goals from 🇲🇦 @ SoufianeRahimi2, the 🔝 # TotalCHAN2020 scorer!
🤩 pic.twitter.com/kSRHQaKsTZ
- # TotalCHAN2020 - FR (@caf_online_FR) February 4, 2021
Morocco then easily dismissed Zambia (3-1) then Cameroon (4-0) in the knockout rounds.
With 12 goals scored in the last three matches, including five for Soufiane Rahimi alone, the Moroccan armada has proven that it knows how to score.
"We made the trip to Cameroon with an iron will to keep our title. We still have a small step for the title. It will not be easy. It will be a difficult match against Mali," said Houcine Ammouta.
The Malian safe
Opposite, Mali is the perfect opposite of this Moroccan selection: With only one goal conceded in five matches, Nouhoum Diané's men have transformed the nest of the Malian Eagles into an impregnable safe.
Not so surprising when the Malian captain is Djigui Diarra, an exemplary goalkeeper who has multiplied the decisive parries to take his teammates to the top of the competition.
Djigui Diarra dances after qualifying Mali in the Chan 2021 final https://t.co/AkXMNcdgTJ via @YouTube
- Yacouba Tangara (@ Tangara61247915) February 4, 2021
Still, Mali suffered in its quarter-final and semi-final.
Against Congo and Guinea, the Eagles did not score in 240 minutes of play and each time went to seek their qualification during the penalty shoot-out.
If the Eagles excel in the exercise (100% successful shots to date), they were able to leave feathers in these extended matches.
Will the eagles' impregnable defense be enough to win the first title in CHAN, five years after the final lost against DR Congo in Rwanda?
Or will the Atlas Lions sign a historic double and equalize these same Congolese in number of editions won?
Answer this Sunday at 8 p.m.
* The African Football Confederation has decided that the competition will continue to be called TOTAL African Nations Championship Cameroon 2020, despite the tournament being postponed to 2021 due to the Covid-19.
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