Hosts Morocco reach the Africa Cup of Nations final after a 0-0 draw, beating Nigeria 4-2 on penalties with goalkeeper Yassine Bounou the hero.
RABAT: Hosts Morocco beat Nigeria 4-2 on penalties to reach the Africa Cup of Nations final after a tense semi-final ended 0-0 following extra time.
Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was the hero, saving two spot-kicks in the shoot-out at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium.
Bounou denied Samuel Chukwueze and Bruno Onyemaechi, allowing Youssef En-Nesyri to convert the winning penalty and spark wild celebrations.
Morocco will now face Senegal in Sunday’s final after the Lions of Teranga defeated Egypt 1-0 in the other semi-final.
The clash will pit Africa’s top two ranked teams against each other in a fitting tournament showpiece.
Walid Regragui’s Morocco are under pressure to deliver a first AFCON title for their country in half a century.
Nigeria’s agonising exit comes two years after they lost the final to hosts Ivory Coast.
The Super Eagles had been arguably the tournament’s best team and top scorers with 14 goals before the semi-final.
They created next to nothing during 120 minutes and must now face Egypt in Saturday’s third-place play-off.
Morocco used their home advantage and a deafening 65,458-strong crowd to unsettle Nigeria.
A frenetic opening saw Brahim Diaz curl a shot wide and Ademola Lookman force a save from Stanley Nwabali.
The second half was more tense with fewer chances, as the spectre of penalties grew larger.
Nigeria seemed to settle for the shoot-out, even taking off star striker Victor Osimhen.
Morocco famously won on penalties against Spain at the 2022 World Cup and repeated the trick to reach the AFCON final.
