"I agree with Mendy": former Morocco star makes serious accusation against Diaz over Africa final penalty

Younes Belhanda cites the reaction of Senegal's players to the famous missed penalty

Younes Belhanda has reopened the debate over the penalty Brahim Diaz missed with a Panenka in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations final against Senegal. The former Morocco international floated a striking theory about what really happened, while admitting he has no evidence to back it up.

Speaking on an episode of the "Rothen s'enflamme" programme on France's RMC, Belhanda revisited the penalty, which came in the dying minutes of stoppage time. Morocco had a golden chance to seal the title in front of their own fans, but went on to lose 0-1 after extra time, Pape Gueye firing home the winner in the 94th minute.

Real Madrid's Diaz stepped up in the 90+8th minute. He chose a Panenka, and the ball dropped straight into the arms of Senegalese goalkeeper Edouard Mendy as Moroccan supporters looked on in disbelief.

Belhanda said of the penalty: "At first, I felt angry at him, but in the end you tell yourself: I could have been in his place and done the same thing."

Belhanda puts forward a striking hypothesis about the penalty

Even while acknowledging the mistake, Belhanda refused to call it a stupid act. He reckoned the verdict would have been entirely different had Diaz scored.

He explained: "Because if he had scored it, look at Zinedine Zidane in the final. When he scored his goal against Italy in the 2006 World Cup final, I said he was an exceptional player, and that what he did was amazing."

Then the former Nice and Montpellier man, now at Qatar's Al Sailiya, went further still. He revealed a personal belief about the circumstances of the penalty.

Belhanda said: "I think they agreed about the penalty. I think Brahim Diaz told the goalkeeper that he was going to do it."

He then laid out the basis for his suspicions: "I think so because the reaction of the Senegal players to the penalty did not suggest that they were surprised. You know the nature of the emotions in a final like this. That is what I think, it is my personal opinion. There is no evidence, it is just a feeling."

Nothing here goes beyond a hunch. Belhanda offered no proof of any agreement between Diaz and the Senegalese goalkeeper over the penalty or its outcome.

A quarter of an hour of chaos preceded the penalty

Those remarks feed into the ongoing row over the final's closing minutes. Tension boiled over after the penalty was awarded to Morocco following a VAR review, with Senegal already furious at having a goal of their own ruled out for a foul on Achraf Hakimi.

Everything spiralled after the referee's decision. Senegal's players protested, left the pitch, and some fans stormed on, before the match finally resumed and Diaz took the penalty after a long stoppage.

Diaz was visibly shaken after missing. Tears welled in his eyes, and he was substituted a few minutes later.

Morocco lost on the pitch, but the case took a fresh turn roughly two months later. On 17 March, the appeals committee of the Confederation of African Football ruled Senegal had lost by forfeit with a score of 0-3, citing Articles 82 and 84 of the tournament regulations, which cover leaving the pitch before the end of the match without the referee's permission.

The Senegalese Football Federation then appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. A ruling is expected at the end of November, leaving the case wide open to new developments.