SENEGAL and Morocco will clash in the final of the ongoing 2023 UN-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Friday, May 19.

The two teams qualifed for the final after winning their semi-finals encounters.

Senegal survived a penalty shoot-out to beat Burkina Faso at the 19 May 1956 stadium in Annaba, on Sunday, May 14.

The game went to penalties after a 1-1 draw in regulation time.

This is the first time the Senegalese team will get to the final.

Also, the second semi-finals match between Morocco and Mali was decided by a penalty shoot out after a 0-0 stalemate in regulation time.

The penalties ended 6-5 in favour of Morocco. The Moroccan goalkeeper, Taha Benrhozil, was the hero after saving three out of eight penalties.

For the third-place match, Burkina Faso will slug it out against Mali on Thursday, May 18.

Senegal’s road to the final

Senegal began their campaign with a slim victory against Congo in their opening group match. Then, they went ahead to beat Algeria 3-0, rounding off by defeating  Somalia 3-0.

Senegal overpowered South Africa 5-0 in the quarter-finals before defeating Burkina Faso 5-4 on penalties to get to the final.

Morocco’s journey to the final

Morocco started with a 2-0 win against South Africa in their opening group-stage match before defeating Nigeria 1-0 in the second match.

In the third match, Morocco lost to Zambia but eventually qualified for the knockout stage.

In the quarter-finals, Morocco defeated Algeria 3-0, after which they won 6-5 on penalties against Mali to get to the final.