A decisive Arab derby between Egypt and Sudan in the African Nations Cup
On Wednesday, attention will turn to Ahmedou Ahidjo Stadium in the capital, Yaoundé, the decisive Arab derby between Egypt and its neighbor Sudan, to book a ticket to the quarter-finals of the African Nations Cup in football in Cameroon in the third and final round of Group D competitions.
The two Arab teams compete for the second direct card of the group with Guinea-Bissau, which seeks to overcome the first round for the first time in its history when it meets Nigeria, the leader and guarantor of the first place and the second round card.
Nigeria leads the group with six points from two wins over Egypt 1-0 and Sudan 3-1, three points ahead of Egypt, while Guinea-Bissau and Sudan share third place with one point each, with the advantage of the goal difference for Guinea Bissau, which is participating in the continental wedding for the third time in a row. in its history.
The "Nile Derby" will not be easy, despite the "Pharaohs"' superiority over the "Gedian Hawks" in the history of the confrontations between them, as they met 28 times, Egypt was the highest heel in 19 meetings compared to three victories for Sudan.
The two teams met five times in the continental wedding, and the Pharaohs won 3 times, the last of which was 3-0 in the 2008 edition, when they won the title, compared to a 2-2 draw in the 1963 edition in Ghana as well, and a 1-2 loss in the 1970 edition in Sudan.
The Egyptian team hopes to exploit the high morale after the difficult and valuable victory over Guinea-Bissau 1-0 in the second round, when it compensated for its fall in the first against Nigeria, which was the first in the first round of the continental wedding since 2004 in Tunisia when it fell to its Algerian counterpart 1-2.
Since that defeat, Egypt has not lost 16 matches in a row (12 wins and 4 draws).
The Egyptians have not made a convincing performance so far in the tournament through which they seek to regain their glory and the title absent from their treasuries since 2010 when they won the third title in a row and seventh in their history (a record), knowing that they reached the final of the 2017 edition and lost 1-2 to Cameroon.
Egypt is well aware of the importance of the three points that will give it the second card, regardless of the outcome of the Guinea-Bissau-Nigeria match, and a draw will qualify it if Guinea-Bissau falters.
The Egyptian team suffers from severe absences, especially in defense, due to the unavailability of Zamalek players Mahmoud Hamdi “Al Wensh” and Ahmed Aboul Fotouh (muscular injury for each), and Al-Ahly Akram Tawfiq (cutting the cruciate ligament).
Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz is expected to push Ahmed Sayed "Zizou" in the midfield instead of Abdullah Al-Saeed, as the only surprise in the squad, according to Egyptian newspapers.
The Egyptian team is counting on its star and Liverpool player, Mohamed Salah, who broke his fast from scoring internationally by scoring the winning goal against Guinea Bissau.
Salah's first goal was after a six-match fast, especially since he shook the Comoros two goals.
Sudan will not be an easy opponent, especially since his hopes are still in the competition for the second direct card or as the best third place holder, as the tournament system gives 4 cards to the best third place owners in the six groups to reach the second round.
Sudan's qualification depends on its victory and Guinea Bissau's stumble, or its victory by more than two goals and Guinea Bissau's victory over Nigeria by one goal.
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