Mali vs Tunisia: Les Aigles send Carthage Eagles out of AFCON with 10 men, book quarter final clash with Senegal

Finishing second in Group C behind Nigeria, Tunisia secured a spot in the round of 16 at the 2025 AFCON competition. They faced Mali, who also came second in Group A behind the host nation, Morocco.

Both teams were vying for the quarter-final spot but had to settle for a dramatic 1-1 draw at full-time, taking the game into extra time.

A game of who wanted it most was settled from the penalty spot, with Mali claiming the victory 3-2 from the shootout to book a place in the quarter-final against Senegal.

Tunisia have not had a decent run in the group stage, having secured only one victory, which came against Uganda in their first game. They finished the group with only four points after a loss to Nigeria and a draw with Tanzania.

On the other hand, Mali also had a rough patch in their group and could only manage three points after three straight draws.

The Carthage Eagles started the game on the front foot but failed to find the back of the net with the chances created.

Mali gifted them an opportunity to have more control in the game after an awful challenge from Woyo Coulibaly in the first half saw him sent off.

In the second half, Tunisia had to wait till the 88th minute to break the deadlock after Elias Saad sent a long raking pass onto the head of Firas Chaouat, who made no mistake from close in and sent the ball into the top right corner.

However, shortly after the goal, Mali, who were playing with 10 men, attacked the Tunisian box and got a penalty from a handball offence in the box, with Lassine Sinayoko slotting the ball past the goalkeeper to send the game to extra time.

Both teams then failed to make the extra 30 minutes count and headed into penalties. Heading into penalties, Tunisia missed three and scored two, while Mali missed two and scored three to win 3-2 and qualified for the next round.