Nigeria upset, Tunisia to meet Morocco in Nations’ final

Hosts Tunisia will meet north African rivals Morocco on Saturday in the first Nations Cup final between two Arabic-speaking countries since ...

Hosts Tunisia will meet north African rivals Morocco on Saturday in the first Nations Cup final between two Arabic-speaking countries since 1959. In Wednesday’s semi-finals Tunisia needed a penalty shootout to overcome Nigeria at Rades but Morocco romped home against Mali, winning 4-0 in Sousse.

Tunisia held the fancied Nigerians to a 1-1 draw, with captain Khaled Badra equalising from the penalty spot just eight minutes from end, and then went on to win 5-3 in the shootout. It will be Tunisia’s third appearance in the final but the north African country have never won the continent’s premier title.

Morocco, whose only Nations Cup success came in 1976, continued their surprise success at the tournament with an easy win over Mali, who were also beaten semi-finalists two years ago.

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Striker Youssef Mokhtari cracked home a free kick after 15 minutes and added another in the 58th minute from distance to kill the game off. Goals by Youssef Hadji and substitute Nabil Baha in the last 10 minutes turned the victory into a rout.

“It’s going to be a really tough final,” said Tunisian goalkeeper Ali Boumnijel of Saturday’s derby clash, to be played at Rades on the outskirts of the capital. “We played each other in a friendly not so long ago and they are a good team,” he said of Morocco.

Boumnijel, 37, was one of the heroes on a night of much celebration for Tunisians, who filled the streets of the capital in celebration after their hard-fought win. His save in the shootout from Peter Odemwingie set up Tunisia’s win, which was completed when 20-year-old defender Karim Hagui scored the deciding kick.

Nigeria had a soft penalty awarded to them midway through the second half which was converted at the second attempt by captain Jay Jay Okocha.

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But Tunisia’s celebrations are tempered by the fact their captain Badra will miss the final through suspension. He was voted man of the match after a superlative display in Wednesday’s semi-final.