On the evening of January 16, 2022, Beijing time, the second round of the African Cup of Nations Group F began, Mali vs Gambia. In the first half, the two teams drew 0-0. In the second half, Mali and Gambia each relied on a penalty to achieve a 1-1 draw. As new recruits in the Africa Cup of Nations, their record of 1 win and 1 draw in the first two rounds of the group stage is already a very remarkable feat, especially against the African lion Mali.
The Gambia team fifa ranks 150th and belongs to the weak brigade in Africa. He has only played against Mali twice in the record of matches, and the record is 1 draw and 1 loss, and he has not won. In the first round of the group stage, the Gambia team won the opening goal with a 1-0 small victory over Mauritania, which was also the first time the team scored its first goal and won the African Cup of Nations.
Mali FIFA ranked 53rd, defeated the world's 30th-ranked Tunisia team 1-0 in the first round of the group stage, and due to the large number of big names in the team, it was also considered by the media to be the favorite to win the African Cup of Nations.
In the starting line-up, the Gambia team lined up in a 451 formation, and the biggest player in the starting lineup was The forward Moussa Barrow, who played for Bologna, with a value of 20 million euros. This was followed by Defender Colle, who played for Sampdoria, for €5 million. The total value of the Gambia starting line-up is 29.38 million euros;
Mali sent a 433 formation, and the Malian coach made some adjustments to the lineup in the first game against Tunisia, and the total value of the starting lineup reached 75.85 million euros.
After the start of the match, Mali played aggressively and the Pressure on the Gambian team's defense was great. Watching this game, there is a feeling that the Saudi team is playing against the Chinese team. However, the Gambia team played much stronger than the national football team, and mali's 10 shots in the first half did not break through the Gambian team's goal.
In the second half, Mali replaced Amadou Hydara for 24 million euros, including another midfielder, North, with the intention of stepping up the attack.
In the 73rd minute, Mali won a very good chance to score, but the striker Coney had already crossed the goalkeeper's premise, and the empty goal was blocked by the Gambian players, and finally regrettably lost this almost must-score opportunity.
But the Gambia didn't have a good time, and just 2 minutes later, the Gambian players fouled a defensive attack in their own penalty area, the referee awarded a penalty, Ibrahima Koone took the penalty and Malian managed to take a 1-0 lead.
The dramatic scene came in the 88th minute, when the Gambia attacked into the Mali penalty area, the Mali defender accidentally handballed a foul, the referee again awarded a penalty, Moussa Maro scored the ball, 1-1 equalizer.
This game also set 3 new records. First, although it is a draw, in the history of Mali, the two teams have met a total of 3 times, and Mali has maintained an unbeaten record; second, Mali has achieved an excellent result of 8 unbeaten games in all competitions in Africa; third, the Gambia, as a new team in the African Cup, has achieved 1 win and 1 draw for the first time in the African Cup of Nations group stage, which has created a new history for the team.