For Mohamed Salah, it was a familiar feeling of anguish on the international stage.
The Liverpool forward looked on in dismay and disbelief as the referee’s whistle sounded at the Grand Stade de Tangier on Wednesday night and consigned Egypt to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Senegal in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations semi-final.
In a stale and largely uneventful affair in Morocco, it was Sadio Mane’s thumping effort 12 minutes from time that was enough to secure Senegal’s place in Sunday’s final.
This was not in the script for Salah nor Egypt, who arrived in Morocco last month openly targeting a first Afcon title since 2010.
Speaking to BBC World Service after the game, Mane said of his former Liverpool team-mate: “It is not easy for him – but still best of luck.
“He did everything to carry his team until now. Unfortunately one of us had to [lose]. I’m happy [to be] in the final.”
For Salah, the sight of Mane – with whom he reportedly had an indifferent relationship with at Anfield – soaking up glory on the international stage, while he suffered hurt, has been one that has become all too familiar in recent years.
In the 2021 Afcon final, Mane – still at Liverpool with Salah – scored the decisive spot-kick to upset Egypt and clinch his nation’s maiden title.
A couple of months later, when the two sides met in a two-legged tie for a place at the 2022 World Cup, it was Mane again who converted the winning penalty in the shootout to seal his side’s place at the Qatar showpiece after Salah had blazed his effort over the bar.
Now, nearly four years on, this dispiriting loss – after a timid and uninspiring performance from his side in the last-four tie – will cut just as deep for Salah.
Since moving to Liverpool in 2017, Salah has won every major club trophy on offer, including the Premier League twice and the Champions League.
But it is continental kingship the 33-year-old has spent the twilight years of his career chasing.
“Nobody, even in Egypt, wants to win this trophy more than me,” said Salah after helping his team beat Ivory Coast in the quarter-finals last week.
“I have won almost every prize. This is the title I am waiting for.”
It would be hasty and premature to suggest this will be Salah’s last Afcon with Egypt.
The forward, who has amassed more than 110 caps for the Pharaohs since his debut in 2011, could still feature in the 2027 and 2028 editions of the tournament before it switches to a four-year cycle.
But with his age, and long-term future at Liverpool unclear after a public outburst at Elland Road last month, it could be the last time Salah features in the competition as a Premier League talisman.
Speaking after the game, former Chelsea and Nigeria midfielder John Obi Mikel said: “He has been waiting. We are all fans of Mo Salah, I played with him, great guy.
“He has won everything at club level but everyone wanted him to win this title. Now he needs to go back to Liverpool and carry on with his career.”
Meanwhile, former Morocco midfielder Hassan Kachloul warned Salah he was running out of time to lead Egypt to an eighth Afcon title.
“He will not stop until he gets his rewards. He will play again in two years,” said the 52-year-old, who had spells at both Southampton and Aston Villa in his career.
“He will try to concentrate on the next tournament and win the title – or else it will be the one that gets away as there won’t be many more chances.”
Salah and Egypt will face Nigeria in a third-place play-off on Saturday, before he returns back to Liverpool looking to put this disappointment behind him.
Everything seemed set up for Salah to finally end his long wait for his first Africa Cup of Nations title here in Morocco.
He was playing better than he ever has during this tournament. By his own admission, he was enjoying himself as much as he ever has on international duty, talking about the fun with his team-mates away from the scrutiny and pressure he normally experiences at Afcons because their team camp was in beautiful, private surroundings, on the beach in Agadir.
Egypt also seemed to be improving with every game at this Afcon and peaking at the right time. They were excellent in the quarters against Ivory Coast.
Yet again, though, Egypt’s old problems during the Salah era came back to haunt them. They were too negative and too reliant on Salah or Omar Marmoush to pluck a moment of magic out of very little service.
This will be heartbreaking for Salah. His generation followed an Egypt generation that won three Afcons in a row.
Off the field, political issues impacted his early years with the national team, but then he came so close to lifting the trophy as defeats in the 2017 and 2021 finals were followed by this loss in the semis against Senegal.
The question now is, will he follow Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez by making this his last Afcon?
Salah’s legacy as Egypt’s greatest player is assured whatever happens, but it will be a huge frustration for him if he ends his career without lifting African football’s greatest prize.
