Kicked off on April 29, the African Under-17 Nations Cup, AFCON U-17 2023, will end this Friday, May 19, with the grand final between the Atlas Lion Cubs and the Teranga Lion Cubs.
After having respectively beaten Burkina Faso and Mali in the semi-finals last Sunday, Senegal and Morocco will clash this Friday at the Nelson Mandela stadium, from 9 p.m. (UT).
In a press conference, on the eve of the game against Senegal, the coach of the Atlas Cubs, Saïd Chiba reiterated his ambition to win the trophy with his young players.
“Our first goal was qualifying for the World Cup, we achieved it. Now that we have reached the final, we naturally aim to win the trophy,” said Mr. Chiba.
For him, the match against Senegal will be “very difficult” since, he believes, the opponent is tough and deserves respect. “We are ready to deliver a great match and live up to the expectations of the Moroccan public”.
Senegal’s expectations for the AFCON U-17 2023 final
On the other hand, the technician of the Senegalese team, Serigne Saliou Dia considers Senegal’s accession to the final of the competition, as “an exceptional performance.” He therefore hopes for an ideal match against Morocco tonight.
“I think it’s going to be a good game. The Moroccan team is playing well and getting good results. We are going to enter a new stage in the competition, we are going to see what we are going to do against Morocco, what we are going to do to be crowned. We will build strategies and relationships between players, we will also have a determination to win, to achieve the title. We will encourage the players, and only the game will ultimately make the difference “, the coach said.
Note that Burkina Faso won third place in the tournament yesterday after beating Mali 2-1.