Burkina Faso beat Gabon in a penalty shootout to reach the quarterfinals in the first knockout game at the African Cup of Nations on Sunday.
Substitute Ismahila Ouédraogo buried the decisive spot kick and Burkina Faso won the shootout 7-6 to finally prevail over a brave Gabonese effort.
Click to Gallery
Burkina Faso beat Gabon in a penalty shootout to reach the quarterfinals in the first knockout game at the African Cup of Nations on Sunday.
It stayed 1-1 through extra time of the round-of-16 game.
Burkina Faso was 1-0 up in normal time through a first-half goal by captain Bertrand Traoré when Gabon had defender Sidney Obissa sent off with just over 20 minutes to go for a second yellow card.
Traore missed that penalty at the start of the game but made up for it 10 minutes later when he ran onto a through ball and slotted his shot underneath Gabon keeper Jean-Noël Amonome, who had come rushing out.
Gabon's Fahd Ndzengue, right, jumps for the ball as Burkina Faso's Steeve Yago defends, during the African Cup of Nations 2022 round of 16 match between Burkina Faso and Gabon at Omnisport Stadium in Limbe, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP PhotoSunday Alamba)
Burkina Faso led 1-0, and Gabon had a man sent off in the 67th. But 10-man Gabon equalized in injury time through an own-goal by Burkina Faso midfielder Adama Guira to send the game to extra time.
Gabon's players celebrate their team's first goal, during the African Cup of Nations 2022 round of 16 match between Burkina Faso and Gabon at Omnisport Stadium in Limbe, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP PhotoSunday Alamba)
It stayed 1-1 through extra time of the round-of-16 game.
Burkina Faso twice had opportunities to win the shootout after Gabon players missed. But Burkina Faso players stepped up and also failed.
Ouédraogo's winning penalty was the 18th of the shootout. He scored after Gabon's Lloyd Palun hit the post for his team's third and final miss.
Gabon's Aaron Boupendza, left, fails to score in front of Gabon's goalkeeper Anthony Mfa Mezui, middle, during the African Cup of Nations 2022 round of 16 match between Burkina Faso and Gabon at Omnisport Stadium in Limbe, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP PhotoSunday Alamba)
Burkina Faso was 1-0 up in normal time through a first-half goal by captain Bertrand Traoré when Gabon had defender Sidney Obissa sent off with just over 20 minutes to go for a second yellow card.
Obissa had blatantly pulled a Burkina Faso attacker back by the shirt off the ball as the Burkinabes were surging forward.
It was a miserable day for Obissa, who picked up his first yellow card when he gave away an early penalty with a push on Burkina Faso's Issa Kaboré on the edge of the area.
Referee Jiyed Redouane of Morocco, left, shows a red card to Gabon's captain Sidney Obissa, during the African Cup of Nations 2022 round of 16 match between Burkina Faso and Gabon at Omnisport Stadium in Limbe, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP PhotoSunday Alamba)
Traore missed that penalty at the start of the game but made up for it 10 minutes later when he ran onto a through ball and slotted his shot underneath Gabon keeper Jean-Noël Amonome, who had come rushing out.
Chasing the game at 1-0 down, the 10 men of Gabon lived dangerously after Obissa took a walk but they raised themselves for one final effort from a corner in the first minute of injury time and the ball bounced off Guira and into his own net to take it to extra time.
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Burkina Faso's captain Bertrand Traore, right, controls the ball away from Gabon's Andre Biyogo Poko, during the African Cup of Nations 2022 round of 16 match between Burkina Faso and Gabon at Omnisport Stadium in Limbe, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP PhotoSunday Alamba)
Gabon's Fahd Ndzengue, right, jumps for the ball as Burkina Faso's Steeve Yago defends, during the African Cup of Nations 2022 round of 16 match between Burkina Faso and Gabon at Omnisport Stadium in Limbe, Cameroon, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP PhotoSunday Alamba)