Morocco Keeper Bono Makes 'Never-Before-Seen' Penalty Save in AFCON Shootout

Yassine "Bono" Bounou pulled off one of the greatest saves in AFCON history before hosts Morocco secured their place in the final with a dramatic penalty shootout win over Nigeria.

Morocco will face Senegal in Sunday's Africa Cup of Nations final after they scraped past Nigeria.

Walid Regragui's side, who came into the game unbeaten in their last 23 games, looked on top for most of the semi-final clash in Rabat but 90 minutes and extra time failed to separate the two teams.

A penalty shootout was needed to decide the match and, like he has done on several occasions down the years, Bounou came to the rescue with some outstanding stops.

The 34-year-old, who plays his club football for Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal, saved attempts from Samuel Chukwueze and Bruno Onyemaechi, with his final save of the shootout being the standout moment.

Bono made an extraordinary stop in the penalty shootout. Image credit: Getty

As seen in the footage below, Bono denied Onyemaechi after moving early to his far left.

It looked like Onyemaechi's powerful strike was heading for the net but after staying upright, the Moroccan goalkeeper reached out with his right hand at the very last second, showing incredible reflexes.

It was a save that became a huge talking point on social media, with many saying they hadn't seen a stop like it in a penalty shootout.

One fan wrote: "What the actual f--- was that lmao he literally walked didn't even dive, I've never seen that. I think he probably expected a high corner shot. Actually pretty clever when you think about it."

A second said: "This is insane. I don't think I've ever seen anything like this before," and a third commented: "The save of the decade."

A fourth wrote: "One of the weirdest save I've seen in a shootout. Bono went far too early, dove past the ball and then had to check back and get a strong hand to it," and a fifth said: "That’s the best save of all time from Bono."

A sixth added: "INSANE save by Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bono in penalties against Nigeria. Has anybody, EVER, seen a save like this? Insane."

As mentioned above, Bounou often comes up clutch when his country need him most.

Back in 2022, Morocco reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time after beating Spain in a penalty shootout, as goalkeeper Bono saved two out of three spot kicks.

Towards the end of last month, Morocco manager Walid Regragui labelled the experienced shot-stopper as one of the best goalkeepers in world football.

"I am reluctant to single out individuals, but Bono is a key figure in our squad," Regragui told reporters. "He is one of the best goalkeepers in the world."