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Tag: Egypt

  • Senate President leads FG delegation to AFCON 2019, with Dalung, 9 others as members

    President Muhammadu Buhari has picked the President of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan, as leader of the Federal Government delegation to the ongoing 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals in Egypt.

    Also on the delegation are the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.

    Governors Ifeanyi Okowa and Babajide Sanwo-Olu, of Delta and Lagos respectively, are equally to be part of the delegation.

    There are also the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, President of the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), Habu Gumel, and a Representative of the Presidency; Captain Hosa Okunbo.

    The Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports, Olusade Adesola, and Muhammad Gambo, the ministry’s Director of Facilities, are also members of the delegation.

    A former Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, completes the 11-man list.

    Members of the delegation are expected to arrive in Egypt next week, in time for the Super Eagles’ Round of 16 encounter.

  • Hosts Egypt beat Zimbabwe to make winning start to AFCON

    Hosts Egypt beat Zimbabwe to make winning start to AFCON

    Mahmoud Trezeguet scored for hosts Egypt to get a winning start to 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Friday in Cairo.

    It was the only goal in a 1-0 win in the opening game against Zimbabwe in a high tempo start to the tournament.

    Trezeguet’s 41st minute strike proved decisive as Egypt missed out on a myriad of chances to make a bigger impact.

    But they will be satisfied to have taken the first three points of the month-long event.

    Trezeguet’s finish overshadowed a return to Cairo for UEFA Champions League winner Mohamed Salah.

    The Liverpool forward’s every touch was loudly cheered but he had a frustrating evening as he could not convert his chances.

    A packed crowd of 70,000 ensured a heady atmosphere at the Cairo International Stadium.

    Many of them had queued from up to 12 hours before kick-off to enter the stadium.

    Zimbabwe looked to feel the pressure as Egypt had ample opportunity to take an early lead.

    Zimbabwe’s goalkeeper Edmore Sibanda had a busy start with two saves inside the opening three minutes ——— both times touching the ball clear of his goal from headed efforts.

    Salah was involved in a slick passing move in the ninth minute that offered Abdallah El Said a chance to score the tournament’s opening goal but again Sibanda saved well.

    El Said then blasted wide with a similar chance from close range just three minutes later.

    Salah’s first effort came after 17 minutes as he cut in from the byline but had only a tight angle to work with and put it wide of the target.

    Egypt had a scare as Zimbabwe took a quick free-kick that caught the home defence napping but not goalkeeper Mohamed El Shennawi, who came out timely to smoother the opportunity.

    Then Trezequet broke the deadlock.

    Picking up the ball out wide, he collected it back inside the penalty area after a short pass.

    He then made a body check to shake off the defence and open room for himself to fire home a curling shot that gave Sibanda no chance.

    Salah, who showed no signs of post-season fatigue after a long campaign with Liverpool, had Egypt’s best chances of the second half.

    But he continued to be thwarted as Zimbabwe finished stronger.

    Ovidy Kararu’s powerful shot was the closest they came to an equaliser, but it was saved by El Shennawi.

    The Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda ——— the other two teams in Group A ——- will get their campaign underway on Saturday.(

  • AFCON 2019 finally begins in in Egypt

    The 2019 African Cup of Nations, AFCON, begins in Egypt on Friday with arrays of African stars, mostly plying their trade in Europe, on display.

    The Nations Cup is by far Africa’s biggest showpiece and the dream of any African player. The tournament has produced big guns like Roger Milla, Abedi Pele, Rashidi Yekini, Austin Okocha, Samuel Eto’o, Didier Drogba and a host of others.

    With 24 teams taking part in this year’s showpiece, the tournament has been expanded from the 16-team format. This means that 12 teams will qualify from the group stage automatically, with four best losers to make it 16 teams for the Round of 16.

    The team for this year’s tournament are: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Cote’D Ivoire, DR Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, Namibia, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

    Going by FIFA’s latest ranking, Senegal, Tunisia, Nigeria, Morocco, DR Congo, Ghana, Cameroon and Egypt are top favourites to reach the quarter-finals of the showpiece. But there are always surprises in African football as the underdogs can spring surprises.

    On paper, host Egypt and Senegal are the favourites as they boast of superstars who just emerged triumphant in Europe in the just-concluded season. Egypt’s Mohamed Salah and Senegal’s Sadio Mane are the biggest stars of this tournament and the two countries have formidable team that can win the tournament.

    This is not to write-off the defending champions, Cameroon, a heavyweight in African football. Nobody gave them a chance two years ago when they defeated favourite, Egypt to win the tournament in the final.

    Nobody can write-off Nigeria’s Super Eagles. This team, despite not boasting of superstars, have proven over time to rise to the occasion when the chips are down. This team had beaten Cameroon 4-0 during the World Cup qualifiers two years ago at home and drew away with the AFCON’s defending champions. If recent form is anything to go by, the Nigerian team has not been so impressive. They beat Egypt 1-0, drew 0-0 with Zimbabwe and lost 1-0 to Senegal in friendly matches in the build up to the tournament, but despite that, they are no push-over.

    South Africa have a team that can go far in the tournament, but not strong enough to win the tournament, the same as Morocco, who recorded a shocking 1-0 loss to Gambia in a friendly match in the build up to the Nations Cup. Tunisia can also spring surprise at the tournament. Second best team in Africa according to FIFA ranking, Tunisia is a compact team and boast of experience players, but how far can they go? With much diligence, it could climb on to the Semi-finals.

    Also, Cote D’Voire, a former superpower in African football, is not expected to pull a major breakthrough in this tournament as they have been struggling to keep up with others. The Ivorian team lack depth like when Yaya Toure, Didier Drogba and others were in the team. But you can never write them off, anything can happen.

    As for underdogs winning the Nations Cup, that will not happen this year. It has never happened in AFCON that an underdog won the tournament and it is not going to happen in this showpiece.

    Players to watch

    The biggest players of the tournament are Salah and Mane. The two players were key to Liverpool’s winning of the Champions League and runner-up in the Premier League. The two players contributed 42 goals to Liverpool’s success in the English Premier League and scored substantial goals in the Champions League. In Nigeria, Odion Ighalo, who plied his trade in China is another player to watch. He was the highest goal scorer in the qualifier, with 8 goals to his kitty. Nigeria’s hope rests on him to rediscover his scoring formula.

    However, in the opening match of the tournament on Friday, host Egypt square up with an underdog, Zimbabwe. Egypt is expected to win easily, but Zimbabwe have been impressive in the build up to this tournament, holding the Super Eagles of Nigeria to a goalless draw in Nigeria. However, there is no escape for Zimbabwe today as Egypt is expected to claim a vital three points, especially when buoyed by ferocious fans and home support.

  • Onuachu scores fastest goal as Nigeria beat Egypt in Asaba

    Onuachu scores fastest goal as Nigeria beat Egypt in Asaba

    Paul Onuachu scored one of the fastest goals in world football, as Nigeria beat Egypt 1-0 in an international friendly played on Tuesday in Asaba.

    The Denmark-based striker scored in the opening five seconds of the first half, when he fired a thunderous shot past Egyptian goalkeeper, Abdelrehim Mahmoud from outside the 18 yard box.

    It was one of fastest goals that will go into football history.

    According to Total Sportek, Damian Mori, an A-League striker scored a goal in 3.69 seconds for his Adelaide City club against Sydney United in 1995.

    Ex-Arsenal and Germany International, Lukas Podolski has a record of scoring another fast goal, when he scored in 6 seconds in an international friendly between Germany and Ecuador in 2013. FIFA recognises this as the fastest goal in international football.

    Onuachu will now take over the mantle from Podolski.

    The early goal however spurred the Egyptians as they took control of the midfield, putting the Nigerian defence line, led by William Trost-Ekong under pressure.

    Ekong, who arguably was one of the outstanding performers in the Nigerian team, however sustained a head injury, and had his head bandaged.

    Upon the resumption of the second half, Nigerian coach, replaced goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi with Ikechukwu Ezenwa.

    The Egyptians mounted sustained attacks on the Nigerian defence, but were kept at bay by the duo of Ekong and Leon Balogun.

    Nigerian coach, Gernot Rohr made two changes, as John Ogu made way for Semiu Ajayi, while Etebo Oghenekaro came in place of Alex Iwobi.

    In the 88th minute of play, Rohr pulled out goalscorer, Onuachu, who looked tired, and brought in Odion Ighalo.

    Nigerian goalkeeper, Ikechukwu Ezenwa made two brilliant saves in the added time of the game to deny the Egyptian dangerman, Abdelmegid Islam.

    In a post-match media conference, Egyptian coach, Javier Aguirre applauded the performance of his team even in defeat.

    “We played good football today, and I must commend my players though we lost to Nigeria.

    “We will take the positives from this friendly back home, as we continue to prepare our team for the AFCON.

    He said the absence of Mohammed Salah, Africa’s footballer of the year, was not felt by the team, as there were other great young players.

    On his part, Nigerian coach, Gernot Rohr said the game was a great match for both teams, as they continue their preparations for the AFCON.

    “To me, today’s game is not just a good match, but a great one for both teams. Both teams played good football,” Rohr said.(

  • Our game with Super Eagles critical, says Egypt coach

    Egypt assistant coach Tito Sajivan says the Pharaohs will try to beat the Super Eagles on Tuesday in a friendly at the Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba, Delta state.

    Speaking with newsmen after the arrival of his team at about 2 p.m on Sunday in Asaba, Sajivan said playing against a strong team like Nigeria required seriousness and commitment.

    The Egyptian side arrived in Asaba from Niger Republic where they played out a 1-1 draw with their hosts in their final 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Saturday.

    “This is a very important match, because Nigeria is a strong team and it is our last friendly match before the tournament,” he said.

    “We are going to do our best to win. Of course we are a strong team, but Nigeria is also a strong team. To us, this match is critical and we have a crop of young players here and the right players for the match.

    “We have 24 players on board for Tuesday’s friendly with Nigeria, with the whole delegation numbering about 50.”

  • Egypt to arrive Nigeria March 24 for friendly

    The delegation of the senior national team of Egypt will arrive in Nigeria on March 24 for the March 26 international friendly with the Super Eagles.

    Officials of both the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the Egyptian Football Association have confirmed that the team would arrive aboard a chartered flight.

    It will head to the Asaba Airport direct from Niamey in Niger Republic.

    The Pharaohs are due to take on Niger Republic a day earlier (March 23) on the final day of the qualifying campaign for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

    The Egyptian side, like the Super Eagles, have made sure of a place at the finals holding from June 21 to July 19 ahead of the final day of qualifiers.

    This was before Egypt were handed the hosting right for the championship.

    Seychelles’ Pirates are the Super Eagles’ opponents for their final day of the campaign, March 22.

    Nigeria and Egypt, both former AFCON winners, will clash at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba four days later.

  • Host, Egypt picks six venues for AFCON 2019

    Egypt has chosen six venues across five cities to host this year’s African Nations Cup (AFCON) finals.

    After a board meeting, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) confirmed that Cairo Stadium, Borg el Arab Stadium in Alexandria and Ismailia stadium are among the venues chosen for the tournament.

    Other venues are the army-owned June 30 Stadium, on the outskirts of Cairo, and the Suez stadium.

    The 74 000-seater Cairo Stadium hosted the finals of previous Nations Cup tournaments in 1986 and 2006.

    The June 30 stadium replaces Al Salam, another venue on Cairo’s outskirts which hosts the domestic and African Champions League matches of the country’s most popular club, Al Ahly.

    The Port Said Stadium was closed for five years after the 2012 disaster that followed a league match between Al Masry and Al Ahly.

    Al Masry supporters were accused of inciting violence with many of the dead crushed when panicked spectators tried to escape from the stadium after a post-match pitch invasion by home supporters. Others fell or were thrown from terraces.

    Al Masry, the home club, were only allowed to return to the venue 12 months ago.

    This year’s Nations Cup kicks off on June 21 and has been expanded to include 24 teams. The draw for the group stage will take place in Cairo on April 12.

    Fourteen countries have already booked a finals berth, including first time participants Madagascar and Mauritania, with the remaining 10 places to be decided when the qualification campaign concludes in March.

  • Egypt executes 9 persons for killing attorney-general

    Egyptian authorities have executed nine men convicted over the 2015 killing of the country’s attorney-general, Hisham Barakat, the Egyptian newspaper, El Watan reported Wednesday.

    The men were among a group of 28 who were sentenced to death in the case in 2017. Barakat was killed in a car bomb attack on his convoy in the capital, Cairo.

    Egypt blamed the Muslim Brotherhood and Gaza-based Hamas militants for the operation. Both groups denied having a role.

    Rights group Amnesty International had appealed on Tuesday for authorities to halt the executions, citing testimony by the defendants that they had been secretly detained and tortured into confessing.

    Since 2013, the year that then-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi military ousted President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egyptian criminal courts have issued hundreds of death sentences.

    Only a small proportion have been carried out, though the rate of executions has risen since 2015, rights activists say.

    El Watan newspaper said the executions were carried out on Wednesday morning. The newspapers gave the names of the executed as Ahmad Taha, Abu Alqasim Ahmed, Ahmed Jamal Hijazi, Mahmoud Al Ahmadi, Abu Bakr Al Sayed, Abdul Rahman Sulaiman, Ahmed Mohammed, Ahmed Mahrous Sayed and Islam Mohammed.

    The newspaper also published the confessions of the men about their involvement in the assassination of Barakat by bombing.

    Their execution followed six others carried out earlier this month. Three of those were convicted over the killing of a police office in September 2013, and three over the killing of a judge’s son the following year.

    In both cases the defendants or their lawyers had said torture was used to extract confessions, according to Amnesty International.

    Sisi, who was elected president in 2014 and re-elected last year, says he is working to bring stability and security to Egypt following the turmoil of the 2011 uprising.

  • CAF expels Egypt’s Ismaily from Champions League

    CAF expels Egypt’s Ismaily from Champions League

    Egyptian club Ismaily have been disqualified from the African Champions League after fans forced the abandonment of Friday’s home fixture against Club Africain, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has said.

    Ismaily fans threw stones and water bottles at match officials and the Tunisian club’s players, forcing Cameroon referee Neant Alioum to order the teams into the changing rooms in stoppage time.

    The visitors were leading 2-1 then.

    CAF expelled Ismaily from this season’s competition, having disqualified Algerian side Entente Sportive de Setif after similar scenes in a match against Mamelodi Sundowns in 2016.

    Ismaily’s results in Group C have been annulled, leaving Algerians CS Constantine top with six points from two games.

    Club African and DR Congo side TP Mazembe now have no points from one game.

    TP Mazembe had beaten Ismaily 2-0.

    Egypt were named as hosts of the 2019 African Nations Cup earlier this month in spite of a number of incidents involving unruly fans in recent years.

    The violence had forced local officials to limit the number of spectators at domestic fixtures to 5,000.

  • CAF names Egypt host of 2019 AFCON

    CAF names Egypt host of 2019 AFCON

    The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially announced Egypt as the new hosts of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations tournament.

    Only Egypt and South Africa indicated interests to host the 2019 finals after the rights were taken away from Cameroon late last year.

    According to CAF, Cameroon was not ready to host a successful and expanded 24-team tournament and that necessitated the search for new hosts.

    Before this latest chance, Egypt hosted Africa’s biggest football tournament a couple of times and the Pharaohs remain the most successful team in AFCON history.

    Egypt and Nigeria will be starting off preparations for the 2019 AFCON with a friendly match between themselves.