2019 Africa Cup of Nations: Egypt breaking in, Congo Caught off guard
Egypt breaking in, Congo caught off guard.
The end of the football season for clubs is easier to digest this one year since three major tournaments are taking place this summer: the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, the Copa America in Brazil and the African Cup of Nations in Egypt. The latter officially began last Friday in Cairo with the victory of Pharaohs over Zimbabwe 1-0, a perfect and minimalist way to start the business.
With their worldwide star Mohamed Salah, the Egyptians scored by Mahmoud Hassan (41’) and defeated a team which is supposed not to see the next tour. Supposed only, since the Warriors (the nickname of the Zimbabwean squad) made a good impression for this first game and lost with merely a one-goal gap, a defeat of course but an encouraging one against the host country, favorite in this tournament. Zimbabwe, ranking 110th in the FIFA World Rankings, conserves chances to pass.
If the short defeat of the Warriors was a kind of surprise, the second game of this A group was a genuine one with Uganda beating RD Congo 2-0 thanks to Patrick Kaddu (14’) and Emmanuel Okwi (48’). Both scored with the head, respectively on corner and free kick, to put the Congolese of Cédric Bakambu in a difficult position before challenging Egypt, where the defeat is already forbidden.
By Guillaume Mahot
Africa Global News Publication
