Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané in heated AFCON incident sparking furious bust-up

A tense Africa Cup of Nations semi-final between Egypt and Senegal exploded late in the first half when former Liverpool teammates Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané became embroiled in a flashpoint that triggered a mass confrontation on the touchline.

The incident began when Egypt captain Salah chased back and clipped Mané from behind near the halfway line as the Senegal star drove forward on the counter-attack. The referee blew for a foul, but the temperature rose further seconds later when Egypt’s Mohamed Hany went down under a relatively soft challenge from Senegal midfielder Habib Diarra after play had already been stopped.

While the players on the pitch appeared ready to continue, both benches reacted furiously to the two challenges. Staff members and substitutes from Egypt and Senegal poured towards the technical area, with pushing, shoving and shouting breaking out between the two dugouts. Coaches had to intervene to separate clashing members of the backroom teams as the confrontation spilled along the touchline and briefly overshadowed the match itself.

Despite the chaotic scenes and the clear anger on both sides, the referee avoided issuing mass punishments. No one from either bench was sent off, though Diarra’s protests in the aftermath earned him a yellow card, ruling him out of the upcoming AFCON final should Senegal progress. The booking added to Senegal’s disciplinary headache, with captain Kalidou Koulibaly already suspended after an earlier caution and then forced off with a suspected groin injury.

The flashpoint underlined the competitive edge between Salah and Mané, whose national teams have repeatedly collided on the biggest stages. Here, their duel ignited not only the crowd but both technical areas, turning a finely poised semi-final into an emotionally charged confrontation that will be remembered as much for the touchline bust-up as for the football itself.