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Egypt and Benin will lock horns on Monday evening in Agadir with a coveted quarterfinal ticket at the Africa Cup of Nations up for grabs.
The Pharaohs progressed as Group B winners and go into the Round of 16 encounter as clear favourites against a Benin side making only its second appearance at this stage of the tournament, having last done so in 2019.
Yet, despite their pedigree and status as seven-time AFCON champions, Egypt are striking a note of caution, fully aware that wastefulness in front of goal could prove costly as the competition intensifies.
“We know that in the next rounds we won’t have the luxury of squandering goals. We must try and take every chance we get,” Egypt left winger Mahmoud Trezeguet told reporters during a press conference.
“I see it as a positive that we had all those chances in our previous games as this was never the case in the past,” he added.
Egypt are expected to restore their attacking trident of Mohamed Salah, Omar Marmoush and Trezeguet to the starting lineup as they look to impose themselves offensively in the knockout tie.
Head coach Hossam Hassan will also be keen to avoid a repeat of recent disappointments, following Egypt’s painful early exits at AFCON 2019 on home soil and the last edition in Ivory Coast.
Benin, however, arrived with belief and momentum, buoyed by their historic first AFCON victory over Botswana during the group stage.
“We’ve accomplished our first objective, which was to get out of the group. Now we’re ambitious, we want to win this match and move on to the next round,” said Benin defender Olivier Verdon.
Kick-off for the Egypt–Benin showdown is scheduled for 5 p.m. local time in Agadir.
