Real Madrid ace Brahim Diaz has recently been in the news after missing a Panenka penalty in Morocco’s latest 1-0 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final defeat against Senegal. And, he has now issued a statement, addressing his failure to convert from six yards.
Real Madrid Star Rues AFCON Final Mistake
Earlier this Sunday, Jan. 18, Morocco failed to lift its second AFCON crown, as Senegal star Pape Gueye scored a brilliant winner in the fourth minute of extra time. It would have won the trophy if the Real Madrid ace had netted a penalty with the last kick of standard time.
Diaz, who won the 2025 AFCON Golden Boot award with five goals in seven games, tried to outsmart Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy with a chipped Panenka penalty. However, to his dismay, Mendy stood his ground and easily caught the ball.
Addressing his penalty miss, the Real Madrid man wrote, “My soul hurts. I dreamed of this title… thanks to all the love you all gave me, every message, every show of support that made me feel I wasn’t alone. I fought with everything I had, with my heart above all else. Yesterday, I failed and I take full responsibility. I apologize from the bottom of my heart.”
Before his weak Panenka, Diaz was made to wait close to 17 minutes as the entire Senegal side had walked off the pitch in protest of the penalty decision. In the end, the Real Madrid midfielder watched the Lions of Teranga celebrate their second AFCON triumph.
Diaz concluded, “It will be hard for me to recover, because this wound doesn’t heal easily… but I will try. Not for myself, but for everyone who believed in me and for everyone who suffered with me. I will keep going forward until one day, I can give you all this love back and become a source of pride for my Moroccan people.”
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On Sunday, Morocco head coach Walid Regragui suggested that Diaz had his Panenka shot saved by the former Chelsea goalkeeper owing to the lengthy wait time for his penalty. He said, “He had a lot of time before taking the penalty which must have disturbed him. But, we can’t change what happened. That is how he chose to take the penalty. We need to look forwards now.”
Diaz, 26, has found the back of the net 13 times in just 22 matches for Morocco so far. The former one-cap Spain international, on the other hand, has bagged 21 goals and registered 23 assists in 139 appearances across all competitions for Los Merengues till date.
