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#2 The absence of Kalidou Koulibaly
This is certainly a player Senegal needed in the final. In their semifinal clash against Tunisia, Kalidou Koulibaly picked up a yellow card, effectively ruling him out of the final. Salif Sane was given the nod for this one, and ironically, it was his deflection which cost Senegal the title.
The Algerian midfielders pressed the Senegalese centre backs on occasion, forcing them to play long balls. They missed Koulibaly's ability to play out long and short balls with both feet, as Kouyate and Sane weren't able to find teammates in midfield when closed down.
Koulibaly usually carried the ball out of the defence to draw the opposition out of their shape and played accurate long balls to runners. He also always managed to pick a pass to Sadio Mane.
He was arguably the tournament's best player, and perhaps the outcome of the final would have been different if he had played for Senegal.
