Ibrahim Diakite celebrates with others after Ivory Coast’s Wilfried Zaha

Ibrahim Diakite (C) celebrates with others after Ivory Coast’s Wilfried Zaha scored a goal against Mali at the Africa Cup of Nations 2019 (Afcon), while watching the game on screen in Abidjan, Ivory Coast July 8, 2019. Ibrahim said: “Football is my favorite game because I myself dream of playing for my country one day. The victory of the Ivory Coast will prove our style of play vis-a-vis the whole world. The football in our country always brings us together; our Style of play.” International football can bring unimaginable joy to people from all walks of life but can also leave them distraught beyond comprehension, and that range of emotions reaches maximum exposure at the moment the ball hits the net and dreams are realized or shattered. Reuters photographers across the continent have captured those reactions in a series of telling images during the Africa Cup of Nations, which reaches its pinnacle when Algeria and Senegal meet in the final on Friday. Picture taken July 8, 2019. REUTERS/Thierry Gouegnon