Two months after locking horns in the Africa Cup of Nations final, Egypt and Senegal face off once again as they square off in the first of their two-legged World Cup playoffs clash at the Cairo International Stadium on Friday.
Both sides, who enjoyed an unbeaten run in the group stages of the qualifiers, will be looking to pick up where they left off and strengthen their chances of securing a ticket to Qatar.
Egypt will feel gutted not to have come away with the ultimate prize at the Africa Cup of Nations as they suffered a gruesome penalty shootout defeat against Senegal in the final back in January.
In a cagey affair at the Paul Biya Stadium, both sides failed to truly test each other as they took a cautious approach to the game, and with the scores level after 120 minutes, the game progressed to penalties where Senegal came out victorious.
The Pharaohs will now look to quickly put that heartbreak behind them and return to winning ways as they turn their attention to the World Cup qualifiers where they will face the Lions of Teranga once again, but this time over two legs.
Carlos Queiroz’s men enjoyed an unbeaten run in the qualifying group stage, claiming four wins and two draws from six games to collect 14 points and finish top of Group F with a healthy seven-point lead over runners-up Gabon.
Egypt head into Friday’s game unbeaten in each of their last seven games on home turf, claiming six wins and one draw since a 1-0 loss against South Africa in the 2019 AFCON which they hosted.
Like Friday’s hosts, Senegal secured a World Cup qualification playoff spot after finishing at the summit of Group H with 16 points from six games, eight points above second-placed Togo.
Aliou Cisse’s men’s only dropped points came courtesy of a thrilling 1-1 draw with Togo on November 11, when Habib Diallo netted with the final significant touch of the game to cancel out Richard Nane’s first-half opener.
The newly-crowned African champions head into Friday’s game unbeaten in each of their last 13 games across all competitions, claiming 10 wins and three draws since losing to South Africa on penalties in the COSAFA Cup back in July 2021.
This impressive run of results has been owing to the solid job done at both ends of the pitch as they have scored 24 goals and kept seven clean sheets since their defeat against the Bafana Bafana.
Having won each of the last three meetings between the sides since a 2-1 defeat back in February 2006, Senegal will feel confident of coming away with the desired result on Friday and dashing the hearts of the Egyptians once again.
Egypt World Cup Qualifying – Africa form:
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Egypt form (all competitions):
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Senegal World Cup Qualifying – Africa form:
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Senegal form (all competitions):
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We say: Egypt 1-1 Senegal
Egypt will head into the game desperate to get one over Cisse’s men, having lost each of the last three meetings between the sides, including the slender defeat in January’s AFCON final. While they will have the home advantage, Senegal boast a plethora of world-class talents in their arsenal. We predict the game will end even, leaving all to play for in the return leg.