Sadio Mané has hailed former Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah as "one of the best players in the world" following Senegal's 1-0 semifinal win over Egypt in the Africa Cup of Nations.
Mané's goal in the 78th minute was enough to see Senegal through to the final as Salah's Egypt were knocked out in Tangier, Morocco on Thursday.
Senegal will face hosts Morocco in the final on Sunday after they beat Nigeria on penalties in their semifinal.
Mané, who played alongside Salah at Liverpool under Jürgen Klopp for six years, was full of praise for Egypt and his former teammate after the clash.
"I pay tribute to Egypt of course and as I always said, Egypt is for me the best ever team in Africa," Mané told a post-match news conference.
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"Today they showed it again. Wow. What a team. It was not easy for us and we expect that because it's Africa Cup and we're travelling but we keep patient ... facing these great players, especially Mo Salah, one of the best players in the world.
"Of course he always gives his best for the team, unfortunate for him today as well. I just want to say this is part of football."
Mané left Liverpool in 2022 to join Bayern Munich having won the Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup.
