The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is heating up as Ghana and Egypt, two football powerhouses, prepare to face off on Thursday at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium in Abidjan. Both teams are determined to bounce back after faltering in their opening games.
In their first encounters, Egypt secured a 2-2 draw against Mozambique, narrowly avoiding defeat thanks to a late penalty. Meanwhile, Ghana suffered a 2-1 loss to Cape Verde, adding to their recent struggles in the tournament.
Egypt, with seven AFCON titles to their name, are eager to reclaim the trophy they narrowly missed in the 2021 final against Senegal. Ghana, with four AFCON victories, are looking to redeem themselves after a disappointing group-stage exit in the previous tournament.
Egypt coach Rui Vitoria has cautioned his players against complacency, emphasizing the need to learn from mistakes made in the Mozambique game. He stressed the importance of commitment to the game plan and strength in tackles.
“The players should commit to our plans and be strong in tackles. We had tough moments in the last match, and we must learn from those mistakes to win against Ghana.”
Ghana coach Chris Hughton acknowledged the team’s need for improvement and emphasized the importance of getting a positive result against Egypt. The Irish trainer highlighted the disappointment felt by everyone associated with the team and expressed the necessity of a favourable outcome in the upcoming clash.
“It’s up to us now to recover on [Thursday]. And we know now that going into the Egypt game, it’s a game that we have to get a good result from. I think that has to be the mentality,” the Irish trainer said during the post-match presser.
“The players have to be aware of what this means and how disappointed everybody associated with the country and with the team. And we have no choice. We have no choice but to make sure that it’s a favourable result in our next game against Egypt.”
Football fans are anticipating a fierce battle between these two giants of African football, each eager to make their mark in the 2023 AFCON at 8 pm local time.
FORM GUIDE (LAST FIVE MATCHES)
EGYPT’S OVERALL FORM
- 14 January 2024 Egypt 2–2 Mozambique AFCON 2023
- 7 January 2024 Egypt 2–0 Tanzania Friendly
- 19 November 2023 Sierra Leone 0–2 Egypt 2026 World Cup Qualification
- 16 November 2023 Egypt 6–0 Djibouti 2026 World Cup Qualification
- 16 October 2023 Friendly Egypt 1–1 Algeria Friendly
AFCON FORM
- 14 January 2024: Egypt 2–2 Mozambique AFCON 2023
- 6 February 2022: Senegal 0–0 (a.e.t.) Egypt AFCON 2021
- 3 February 2022: Cameroon 0–0 (a.e.t.) Egypt AFCON 2021
- 30 January 2022: Egypt 2–1 (a.e.t.) Morocco AFCON 2021
- 26 January 2022: Ivory Coast 0–0 (a.e.t.) Egypt AFCON 2021
GHANA’S OVERALL FORM
- 14 January 2024: Ghana 1-2 Cape Verde AFCON 2023
- 8 January 2024: Ghana 0–0 Namibia Friendly
- 21 November 2023: Comoros 1–0 Ghana 2026 World Cup qualification
- 17 November 2023: Ghana 1–0 Madagascar 2026 World Cup qualification
- 17 October 2023: United States 4–0 Ghana Friendly
AFCON FORM
- 14 January 2024: Ghana 1-2 Cape Verde AFCON 2023
- 18 January 2022: Ghana 2–3 Comoros AFCON 2021
- 14 January 2022: Gabon 1–1 Ghana AFCON 2021
- 10 January 2022: Morocco 1–0 Ghana AFCON 2021
- 8 July 2019: Ghana 1–1 (a.e.t.) Tunisia AFCON 2021
AFCON HEAD-TO-HEAD
09 Feb 1970 Ghana 1-1 Egypt AFCON
17 Jan 1992 Egypt 0-1Ghana AFCON
31 Jan 2010 Ghana 0-1 Egypt AFCON
25 Jan 2017 Egypt 1-0 Ghana AFCON
PREDICTED LINEUP
EGYPT
(4-3-3): El-Shenawy; Hany, Hegazy, Abdelmonem, Hamdi; Zizo, Elneny, Fathi; Salah, Mohamed, Trezeguet
GHANA
According to Ghana coach Chris Hughton, Mohammed Kudus is the only player whose availability is uncertain, and he will undergo an assessment before the game on Thursday.
PREDICTED LINEUP
(3-4-3-): Ofori; Seidu, Djiku, Amartey, Salisu, Mensah; Salis, Ashimeru; J. Ayew, Paintsil, Semenyo