Overview:
Senegal will be without captain Kalidou Coulibaly at the back after his red card in the last group match but in Sadio Mane, Ismail Sarr, Idrissa Gueye and Abdoulaye Seck, they have enough ammunition to thwart any Sudan pending threat.
Saturday January 3, 2026
- Grande Stade, Tangier 5pm local time [7pm EAT]
Senegal and Sudan lock horns in the first match in the round of 16 with either seeking a quarter final berth in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Saturday in Tangier.
The Lions of Teranga qualified as group D leaders with 7 points after beating Botswana and Benin and then drawing with DR Congo.
On the other hand, Sudan reached the stage as one of the best four third placed nations on three points earned from their 1-0 win over Equatorial Guinea despite defeats to Algeria and Burkina Faso.
Sudan captain Mohamed Abdelrahman admits it will be a tough game against the 2021 champions but the Falcons of Jediane have more to play for with football the uniting factor following a civil war back home.
“It will be a very difficult match by all standards. We know our opponent well. Senegal are a strong and experienced team with a rich history in the competition,” Abdelrahman told the press briefing on Friday.
“The key to victory is our determination, perseverance, belief in ourselves and our desire to go far in this tournament.”
He added: “Progressing past the group stage was a strategic objective for us before the start of this edition, and thank God we managed to achieve it. It was a big and necessary step.”
“We feel both proud and happy because we were able to bring joy to the Sudanese people. Sudanese fans everywhere are following the team’s journey with passion despite the ongoing war. The Sudanese people love football, and it has become the only source of happiness under the current circumstances.”
Senegal will be without captain Kalidou Coulibaly at the back after his red card in the last group match but in Sadio Mane, Ismail Sarr, Idrissa Gueye and Abdoulaye Seck, they have enough ammunition to thwart any Sudan pending threat.
Key Stats
- Sudan and Senegal will be meeting for the first time in AFCON history. However, in other competitions, the two sides have met seven times previously, with Senegal undefeated with four wins and three draws.
- Four of those seven meetings took place in 2025, making the Round of 16 clash their fifth encounter in under a year.
Elsewhere, Mali take on 2004 winners Tunisia at Mohamed V stadium, Casablanca in the late kick off at 20hrs00.