Ismael Gharbi gave Tunisia the lead from the penalty spot on the stroke of half-time.

But Feisal Salum levelled just after the restart in the Group C match at the Stade Prince Moulay Abdellah Annex in Rabat.

AndMiguel Gamondi's men hung on for the stalemate that carried them through as one of the four best third-placed sides to the next phase where they will play the hosts Morocco. Tunisia finished as runners-up.

"We did not have enough time to prepare the team, but worked together with the federation," said Gamondi.

"I feel very proud, not just for myself, but for the country. I wanted to change this mentality of Tanzania always being underdogs.

"To qualify is great for Tanzania. I hope this success will be a reminder to these players and the next generation of players of the potential of Tanzanian football."

Uganda coach Put urges squad to take heart from underdog status against Nigeria

Uganda also had the chance to reach the last-16.

But they fluffed their lines with a ragged display during a 3-1defeat to Nigeriaat the Stade de Fes.

After Paul Onuachu slotted in the opener in the 28th minute for the Nigerians, Uganda imploded.

Omar Salim, who had come on for the injured goalkeeper Denis Onyango mid way through the first-half, was dismissed for handling the ball outside the penalty area in the 57th minute.

Raphael Onyedika hit Nigeria's second soon after and the midfielder bagged his brace mid way through the second-half to earn himself a man-of-the-match award.

Hakimi returns as Morocco stroll into last 16 at Africa Cup of Nations

"This is the kind of thing I've been working all my life for and it has finally come true," said the 24-year-old who plays his club football at Bruges in Belgium's top flight.

Uganda coach Paul Put hailed his players despite the loss. "As soon as we went down to 10 men it made things even harder," said the 69-year-old Belgian who led Burkina Faso to the Cup of Nations final in 2013.

Morocco launch 2025 Africa Cup of Nations with victory over doughty Comoros

"It is not that we didn't want to win but you could see the quality of the Nigerians in the duels.

"That was the big difference," he added. "And we have a young team and very few of them have played at the Cup of Nations so we are lacking in maturity."

Nigeria finished top with nine points from three wins to set up a last-16 tie with Mozambique in Fez on 5 January

Group C

Senegalclaimed Group Dfollowing a 3-0 waltz past Benin. Abdoulaye Seck and Habib Diallo were on the mark either side of the break to give the 2021 champions control at the Stade Ibn-Batouta in Tangier.

But Senegal went down to 10 men after skipper Kalidou Koulibaly was sent off for a tackle on Aiyegun Tosin.

Despite the numerical advantage, Benin could not mount a recovery and Senegal substitute Cherif Ndiaye completed the romp with a penalty in second-half stoppage-time.

Group D

Veteran midfielder Gael Kakuta bagged a brace as the Democratic Republic of Congo took second spot in the pool with a 3-0 victory over Botswana.

Nathanael Mbuku struck just after the half hour mark at the Stade Al Barid in Rabat and Kakuta added the second from the penalty spot just before half-time.

He added his side's third after 60 minutes to send the 2023 semi-finalists into a last-16 clash with the Group E winners Algeria.

Originally published on RFI