Sunday, February 6
•Senegal Vs Egypt – 10pm
Senegal will hope to break their AFCON title final jinx on third time of asking when they face record winners Egypt in Sunday’s epic showdown at the Olembe Stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon.
The Lions of Teranga are in search for their first ever AFCON title and will hope for better fortunes after near misses in 2019 and 2002.
They were beaten 1-0 by Algeria in 2019 in Egypt and lost 3-2 in shootouts to Cameroon in 2002 tourney hosted in Mali.
That 2002 Senegal team was captained by current coach Alliou Cisse who missed the decisive penalty!
The gaffer will be hoping to make amends this time.
“We prepared well for our final with the players who are determined and confident to put in a good show. We will approach this final with determination against a great Egyptian team. We know our opponent well; they have their own philosophy of play with experienced players on the continental level,” Cisse is quoted by the CAF website.
“We are on the way to our objective of winning the title this Sunday evening. We must focus on the final, play it well and thus succeed in our match. We will have to take advantage of the moment. We lost two finals in the past, but this time we will approach the match with more determination.”
Senegal beat Equatorial Guinea and Burkina Faso in the knockout to reach this stage but face a daunting task against Egypt in match that pits together two of the best African players in Mo Salah and Sadio Mane.
The Pharaohs are in search for a record extending 8th AFCON title having triumphed in 1957, 19591, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008 and 2010.
They will look to make amends having lost to Cameroon in 2017 final before they were eliminated by South Africa in the round of 16 on home soil.
“After a lost final in 2017 against Cameroon, we will play our all-out against Senegal to grab an eighth star,” said Egypt captain Salah.
“We are determined to seek the crown. the players are physically and mentally ready. We are here to play the title and that means a lot to us. We want to offer a title to all Egyptian citizens.”
The Stats (CAF media):
- This will be the fifth encounter between Egypt and Senegal at the Africa Cup of Nations and the first such meeting since 2006, with Egypt winning 2-1 in the semi-final on their way to lifting the trophy that year.
- In their four previous meetings at the Africa Cup of Nations, Egypt and Senegal have won two games each, with three of the four matches finishing 1-0 (Egypt’s win in 2000 and Senegal’s in 1986 and 2002).
