Egypt have booked their spot in the Africa Cup of Nations round of 16 after their thrilling 2-2 draw with Cape Verde on Monday.
The Pharaohs looked to earn their first win of the tournament but faced an inspired Cape Verde side who already secured qualification for the knockout stages entering the game.
Despite that, Egypt put on a promising display in the opening stages of the game pressing the opposition while creating a number of clear-cut chances.
This uplift in performance does not come as a surprise as head coach Rui Vitoria had made several changes to his lineup starting Marwan Ateya in midfield with Ahmed Fatouh filling in at left-back.
However, the record AFCON champions were unable to capitalise on their momentum and conceded after Cape Verde’s first attempt on target at the stroke of half-time.
The second half saw Egypt quickly respond with Mahmoud Trezeguet coming off the bench to change the complexion of the game.
The winger played a quick give-and-go pass with Ahmed Hegazi inside the box before finding the back of the net from a tight angle to equalise after 50 minutes.
Nantes centre-forward Mostafa Mohamed was the hero for Egypt after chipping Cape Verde’s Vozinha in style to give his side the lead in stoppage time.
Just seconds later, Egypt were on the receiving end of a counter-attack as another lapse in concentration allowed Cape Verde to level the scoring in the 99th minute.
The draw was still enough to move Egypt into the group’s second place as Ghana were miraculously held to a a 2-2 draw against Mozambique with the latter scoring twice to come back from behind in added time.
