Mauritania fell to a 4-1 loss against Mali on their Africa Cup of Nations bow.
The tournament newcomers were not disgraced in Suez on Monday but found Mali’s extra experience and quality in attack too much to handle in the Group E clash.
Mali captain Abdoulay Diaby scored a wondergoal to open the scoring and Porto striker Moussa Marega added their second from the penalty spot.
And they made sure of all three points when Adama Noss jinked into space and rifled home from the edge of the area, although Moctar Sidi El Hacen converted a consolation penalty before Adama Traore wrapped up the scoring with a stunning curler.
