Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly hailed Edouard Mendy as the best goalkeeper in the world after Senega’s Africa Cup of Nations final penalty shootout triumph.
Chelsea goalkeeper Mendy was on top form on Sunday night to help Senegal beat Egypt in a tense penalty shootout, saving from Mohanad Lasheen to allow Sadio Mane to step up and win the title for his country.
And while the Liverpool man will take most of the headlines, captain Koulibaly was quick to praise Mendy for his heroics on Sunday night.
“It was a tough game and a tough tournament,” he told reporters. “We made it with our team and our power. Our goalkeeper is the best in the world and we win the title.
“We feel happy. We knew it would be hard to win the Africa Cup of Nations but today we made it.
“Our team deserved to win this title. We had been looking for this for a long time and now we have it. This team is magnificent.”
Mendy remarked himself: “We are proud. We never won it before,’ he said. ‘We worked really hard to win this trophy and today we won as a group and as a country and that is why I am super proud.
“The shooters in the penalties did really well, I tried to do my best to save one shot and I did that, so I am super happy.”
