Patson Daka struck deep into stoppage time to earn Zambia a dramatic 1-1 draw against Mali in their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Group A opener in Casablanca, extending the Copper Bullets’ strong recent head-to-head record to just one defeat in their last six meetings.
Mali created the first real opening of the contest just five minutes in when Dorgeles Nene was picked out inside the area, but his effort drifted narrowly wide of the right post.
The first half produced few clear-cut chances, though Zambia were indebted to Benson Sakala on the half-hour mark, as his perfectly timed tackle denied Lassine Sinayoko a clear sight of goal from the edge of the box.
As half-time approached, Mali were handed a golden opportunity to take the lead when Nene was brought down in the area by a rash challenge from Mathews Banda.
Following a VAR review, a penalty was awarded, but El Bilal Touré’s spot-kick was superbly saved by goalkeeper Willard Mwanza, who dived low to his left to keep the score level at the break.
Zambia struggled to impose themselves going forward and failed to register a single shot until the 73rd minute, yet they continued to frustrate Mali.
Just after the hour mark, however, the Eagles finally broke the deadlock. A corner found Touré unmarked in the area, and after Sinayoko’s initial effort was blocked, the ball fell kindly back to him and he fired home from close range to give Mali a deserved lead.
Mali pushed for a second soon after, with Gaoussou Diarra’s acrobatic close-range effort well gathered by Mwanza. With Zambia offering little attacking threat, the opening goal appeared enough to seal victory for the Eagles.
But in a dramatic finale, Zambia snatched an equaliser in the 92nd minute, when Daka rose highest to head home from a Banda cross at close range, sparking wild celebrations among the Zambian supporters.
Mali were left to rue their missed chances, and while extending their record to 14 unbeaten AFCON opening matches, the draw still saw them lose ground on Group A leaders Morocco.
