Two North African giants, Egypt vs Morocco, are fighting for a ticket to the semifinals in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) third quarter-final match.
Both countries have improved their finals in the 2019 edition of the last 16 and reached the quarter-finals and this time they will be looking to take a step forward to round 4.
The Egyptian pharaohs eliminated one of the tournament favorites, Ivory Coast, on penalties to secure their place here.
Despite only scoring two goals in this competition so far, their form has continued to improve after losing 1-0 to Nigeria.
On the other hand, Atlas Lions of Morocco have performed well in this race so far with a recognizable style of play and results.
Egypt vs Morocco: Form and Head-to-Head
Carlos Queiroz’s Egypt team broke a three-game losing streak with a 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau in the second game of the AFCON finals.
Since then, the seven-time African champions won their next two matches despite failing to score in attack with Mohamed Salah.
Only twice in the last 10 matches have the Egyptian team scored more than one goal in a single game.
Vahid Khalilhodzic’s Morocco, on the other hand, have lost just once in their last five matches, same as in their last 10 and last 32.
Eight wins, one draw, one loss, 24 goals scored, five goals conceded and seven clean sheets in their last 10 matches tell the story of a Moroccan team in better form.
In the live matches of the AFCON finals, Morocco has the upper hand with three wins, two defeats and one draw in six matches against Egypt.
Date, Kick-off time, and Venue
The clash between Egypt and Morocco will take place on Sunday 30 January at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaounde until 16:00 Nigerian time.
Team News and Possible Line-ups
Egypt will be without first-choice goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawi as the 33-year-old missed the last 16 with a hamstring injury.
Zamalek goalkeeper Mohamed Abu-Gabal Gabaski proved he is a capable substitute after his heroic penalty shootout against Ivory Coast.
Keiros is still without left-back Akram Taufik, while defensive midfielder Hamdi Fati is also a suspect in the Atlas Lions clash.
Morocco has it all on all fronts with no cleared, injured or positive coronavirus cases to worry about.
Ashraf Hakimi died in a free-kick at AFCON 2021, with the Paris Saint-Germain defender expected to be available to wreak havoc on the Egyptian defence.
Egypt Possible starting XI: Mohammed Abu-Gabal Gabaski; Omar Kamal, Ahmed Hegazi, Mohamed Abdelmonem, Ayman Ashraf; Mohammed Elneni, Amr Al Sulaya, Abdallah El Saeed; Mohamed Salah, Mostafa Mohamed, Omar Marmush
Morocco Possible starting XI: Yassin Bunu; Ashraf Hakimi, Romain Sais, Naif Agard, Adam Masina; Imran Luza, Selim Amalah, Sofyan Amrabat, Sofijane Bufal; Yousef En-Nesiri, Ayub El Kaabi
forecast
Morocco have been targeting first place in the semifinals since 2004 and are looking stronger than Egypt for the first time in a long time.
While Morocco’s second AFCON title may be too early to tell at this point, Atlas Lions will have to beat Egypt 2-1 to set themselves up for the title.
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