LUANDA: The Pharaohs have a date with destiny Sunday in the Angolan capital of Luanda.
Egypt can become the first country to win the coveted Africa Cup of Nations three times in a row, but to do that; they need to first beat Ghana’s Black Stars.
The North Africans already hold several competition records: They have won the trophy eight times out of the 26 that have been concluded, they are on an unbeaten run of 18 matches, and they have participated in more competitions than any other country (22).
Striker Mohamed Zidan is hopeful that they can achieve their goal.
“We want to make history. We have a chance to win the trophy for the third time, and we want to make sure that we achieve that,” he said.
“I think if we manage, it will be a record that will never be broken, because not only does a team have to win the Nations Cup first, they then have to defend it not once, not twice, but three times. I do not think that will be possible.”
Zidan left the stadium after the semi-final with a bandaged ankle but is expected to be fit for the final, and coach Hassan Shehata should have all of his players available.
Egypt have been impressive throughout the tournament and en route to the final have beaten three of the five African World Cup finalists participating in Angola and scored 10 goals against them.
They are the only side in the competition with victories in all their games.
The Pharoahs qualified for the final through an ill-tempered semifinal against Algeria, the side that knocked out them out of the World Cup. The 4-0 victory, in a match that the Desert Foxes ended with just eight players, pushed Egypt into the role of favorites for the final and dropped Algeria into Saturday’s play-off for third place in Benguela against Nigeria.
Egypt captain Ahmed Hassan, whose three goals in the tournament so far have played an important part in getting Shehata’s team to the deciding game, said he was very proud of having led the team so close to making history.
“If we manage the victory, I will be very, very proud, and the greatest thing is that we can make our fans happy,” Hassan said. “But we will not underestimate Ghana. They are a good side.”
The Black Stars have been blowing hot and cold throughout the tournament, with more cold than hot, but their coach Milovan Rajevac has also been forced to travel to Angola with a highly inexperienced squad missing several regulars.
His job was made even more difficult when inspirational midfielder Michael Essien had to pull out of the tournament after injuring himself during training. But Rajevac can call on all other players as they all came through the semi-final unscathed.
The Serb has taken the brave step of throwing several of the Black Starlets, who won the World Youth Cup in October, into the deep end, and they have managed to come through all the way to the final after beating Nigeria 1-0 in the semifinal. Rajevac has brought eight of the 21 under-20 players who were in the squad in Egypt with him to Angola, and he is now looking for one last effort from them.
Ghana’s team was criticized after the victory against the Super Eagles for their defensive tactics, but Rajevac said his players followed his instructions.
“I told my players we were going to play to reach the final and not to produce beautiful football. Only the result matters. It’s all about the result,” Rajevac told journalists after the game.
But to ask his players to now go one step further and beat the Egyptians might be too much — especially as Egypt believe it is their destiny to make it three in a row.
