El Bilal Toure scored the winning spot-kick as a 10-man Mali beat Tunisia 3-2 on penalties to reach the Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinals after their last-16 tie had finished 1-1 at the end of extra time. Lassine Sinayoko converted from the spot to take the tie to extra time and, eventually, on to the decisive shootout. Captain Yves Bissouma, the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder, blazed Mali’s first kick over the bar, but Ali Abdi then missed for Tunisia before Eagles goalkeeper Djigui Diarra saved two further penalties and Toure won it. Tom Saintfiet’s Mali advanced to a quarterfinal next Friday in Tangier against West African neighbours Senegal, after the 2022 champions came from behind to beat Sudan 3-1 earlier. A penalty shootout appeared inevitable, and so it transpired, with Bissouma and Nene Dorgeles failing from the spot for Mali.

Source: The North Africa Journal January 04, 2026 02:26 UTC