At this Africa Cup of Nations, Morocco's ball boys drew widespread attention from fans for their bizarre antics: they repeatedly attempted to steal the towel used by the opposing goalkeeper to dry his hands, apparently trying to unsettle him and disrupt the opponent’s rhythm. In the final match, even Morocco's on-field players joined in this chaotic behavior.
During the match, a video began circulating on social media showing a Moroccan ball boy wrestling with a man in black behind Senegal’s goal, both struggling over a towel held by the man. Security personnel soon joined the chase, leaving fans wondering what exactly was going on.
Could it be that the ball boy was guarding Mendy’s towel? Of course not—the man in black was actually Senegal’s substitute goalkeeper, Diouf. Yet, instead of sitting with his teammates on the bench, he was standing alone behind the goal, holding Mendy’s towel and ready to hand it to him when needed. A closer look also reveals that next to him stood Morocco’s No. 11, Saibari, who had just been substituted off. Rather than taking a seat on the bench, he positioned himself behind Senegal’s goal, seemingly keeping a close watch on Diouf. The Moroccan fan who filmed the video appeared visibly annoyed with Diouf, as footage shows Diouf stepping onto the field of play while handing the towel to Mendy.
This was followed by another angle of the first video: the ball boy and Diouf chasing each other all the way from behind the goal to near the center line.
After the match, substitute goalkeeper Diouf commented on the incident, saying, “It’s hard to find the right words to describe what we’re going through. A towel? I was genuinely shocked when I saw them trying to take it.”
Meanwhile, Moroccan player Achraf’s actions sparked a verbal confrontation between the two teams. During a stoppage in play, he quietly walked over to the goalpost, picked up Mendy’s towel, and immediately threw it out of the field. In a flash, Senegalese defender Hadji Diouf sprinted forward, leaped over the advertising boards, and retrieved the towel. Mendy was clearly unhappy with Achraf’s petty trick, and the two soon got into an argument.
Spectators captured the entire altercation on video and posted it on social media.