In that ultimate group stage game, former Newcastle defender Massadio Haidara scored an opener for Mali against Mauritania following a perfect cross. That was and until today still is Mali’s only goal coming from open play in the tournament.AFCON 2021: Mali set up a knockout clash with Equatorial Guinea, Gambia and Tunisia also throughThe Eagles have netted three more times, and every single one of those goals was actually from the spot. Giving that assignment to Ibrahima Kone proved to be a wise choice since he has been accurate and is now among those tournament’s top scorers with 3 goals.Moreover, Mali even managed to win Group F ahead of Gambia and Tunisia and are now looking to join them both in the 1/4 finals.AFCON 2021: Comical refereeing overshadows Mali’s win over TunisiaIn a couple of minutes, they face Equatorial Guinea, with their last two games ending in Mali’s 1-0 victories. Not as if they’re not accustomed to winning with such a small margin on this AFCON, but they will definitely put on some more effort and, hopefully, add some more non-open-play goals on their account in the quest for the title.AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS – ROUND OF 16Wednesday19.00: (2.40) IVORY COAST (3.00) EGYPT (3.60)22.00: (1.95) MALI (3.35) EQUATORIAL GUINEA (5.00)
