The Africans finished the group stage locked together on points and goals with Japan and were eliminated on the basis of their disciplinary record.
Still their supporters danced and swayed in the stands.
Until Mina's goal, the noise and the colour of the crowd had been required to make up for a tense and disjointed affair on the pitch.
There was lots of rolling around. Lots of treatment required. Lots of pleading with the referee to do whatever he wasn't doing.
Lots of eyes and ears were trained on how Japan were getting on.
The early exchanges were dominated by a referral to the video assistant referee after 17 minutes, after a tackle by Davinson Sanchez on Sadio Mane was ruled a foul and then overturned.
It was indisputable was that Mane was in on goal and preparing to shoot when the challenge came.
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