‘He wanted to be the superhero,’ Romain Saïss criticises Brahim Díaz for his failed Panenka penalty in the Africa Cup of Nations final

The former captain of the Atlas Lions expressed his incomprehension at his teammate's choice at such a decisive moment.

It was the turning point in the electric final between Morocco and Senegal on 18 January in Rabat. With the Atlas Lions on the verge of lifting the continental trophy thanks to a penalty awarded in the dying moments of the match, Brahim Díaz turned everything upside down by attempting a Panenka that he missed.

Romain Saïss openly criticised the attempt a few weeks after Morocco's defeat. For the former Moroccan international, missing a penalty in such a crucial match can happen, but the manner in which it was done is difficult to accept. Saïss says that the context made the situation even more significant because Morocco was looking to end half a century of waiting.

I put my head in my hands and thought to myself: did he really dare to do that? You can miss a penalty in the Africa Cup of Nations, in the final, at the end of the match... That's part of football. But when he tried the Panenka, I said: No, you can't do that now. It's the last second. We hadn't won the AFCON in 50 years, we hadn't even reached a final in over 20 years, and we were playing at home... It was the moment. I thought he was going to kick it right down the middle? Thank you, goodbye, we lift the trophy, we go home happy and we celebrate. From that moment until today, I feel empty... He could have been the hero. But he wanted to be the superhero. I feel sorry for him…