Morocco star Neil El Aynaoui continues playing in AFCON 2025 final despite serious bleeding head wound

The incident occurred in the 64th minute, when Morocco midfielder El Aynaoui clashed with Diouf while both players jumped to challenge for a Morocco corner. The two collided head-on in mid-air.

Diouf was left shaken and required medical attention, but El Aynaoui came off worse. The Roma midfielder was left lying on the ground with blood pouring from his face and needed immediate treatment. The final was halted for more than seven minutes as he was patched up. Remarkably, El Aynaoui was able to continue and went on to play the full 120 minutes.

The AFCON 2025 final between Morocco and Senegal was marked by constant clashes and controversy. In stoppage time, Senegal thought they had taken the lead in the 90+2 minute when Ismaila Sarr headed home, but the goal was disallowed after officials ruled that Abdoulaye Seck had fouled Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi in the build-up.

The main drama came in the final minutes of normal time. Morocco were awarded a penalty after Diouf fouled Brahim Diaz in the box. Senegal strongly protested the decision, with players led by head coach Pape Thiaw walking off the pitch and heading to the dressing room. After a 24-minute delay, the match resumed following intervention from Sadio Mane.

The ending was dramatic. Diaz missed the penalty, sending the match into extra time. Senegal then struck in the 94th minute, when Pape Gueye finished a counter-attack to score the only goal of the final. The strike secured Senegal’s second AFCON title, following their first triumph in 2021.

After the match, Morocco head coach Walid Regragui reflected on the defeat. “To win the Africa Cup is not easy,” he said. “We were very close and everybody is disappointed. But in football, you need to come back strong, accept what has happened, be humble and keep working to do it, inshallah.”