Senegal vs Egypt: Key battles in Africa Cup of Nations final

It’s the AFCON final on Sunday and WhoScored.com have previewed the clash, picking out five head-to-heads between key men to keep an eye on as Senegal and Egypt battle it out for international glory.

Senegal, who beat Burkina Faso 3-1 on Wednesday to reach the final, have yet to win the continental title but came close in Cairo in 2019.

Their road to the final proved a lot easier than Egypt, who lost their opening group game to Nigeria and drew heavy criticism from home fans for their early performances.

But they have gained momentum, edging the Ivory Coast in a penalty shootout in the round of 16; Morocco 2-1 after extra time in the quarter-final and hosts Cameroon on penalties again in Thursday’s semi-final.

The match is being played at Yaounde’s Olembe Stadium, where eight people were killed in a stadium crush last week and that tragedy has overshadowed the tournament in Cameroon. So where can Sunday’s final be won and lost?

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Ahead of the AFCON final live on Sky Sports, we take a look at some of the best goals of the tournament, featuring Sadio Mane, Andre Ayew, Achraf Hakimi and more!

Sadio Mane vs Mohamed Salah

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Jurgen Klopp says it’s a ‘great achievement’ for Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane to reach the Africa Cup of Nations final with their respective countries.

The best place to start, Liverpool’s key attackers lock horns in Olembe as Senegal and Egypt seek to write their name into the history books. For Sadio Mane, AFCON has been a memorable tournament even before Sunday’s final. Mane has been, as was to be expected, the Lion of Teranga’s impact player in Cameroon and he has lived up to the billing, scoring three goals and providing two assists.

What has been important, though, is that he has been named the WhoScored.com man of the match in four of Senegal’s six games, including in each of their three knockout stage games. He has completed more dribbles (19) than any other player at AFCON as he seeks to guide his nation to glory.

By comparison, Mohamed Salah hasn’t been at his best for Egypt, but has come up clutch where needed. The 29-year-old scored the Pharaohs’ only goal of the game against Guinea-Bissau and had a direct hand in both in the 2-1 win over Morocco. The Salah Liverpool fans have witnessed week in, week out may not have shown up in Cameroon, yet the Premier League goal machine still has the means to turn a game in his side’s favour in the blink of an eye.

Edouard Mendy vs Mohamed Abou Gabal

Image: Egypt keeper Mohamed Abou Gabal saves a penalty

The start to Edouard Mendy’s AFCON campaign was delayed due to COVID-19, but his return between the sticks has made one of the tournament favourites that much stronger. That said, Mendy has made just four saves across his four league outings, two of which came in Senegal’s 3-1 semi-final win over Burkina Faso, and has kept just two clean sheets in his four outings.

He may not have been at his best during his time at AFCON, but Mendy affords the Senegal defence an additional layer of defensive solidity and this will be crucial against Egypt who, with Salah, can conjure something out of nothing. If anything, though, the busier of the two goalkeepers will be Mohamed Abou Gabal, provided he keeps his spot between the sticks.

Gabal has conceded just one goal in his three outings at AFCON, that a Sofiane Boufal penalty in Egypt’s 2-1 win over the Atlas Lions. The 33-year-old made two excellent shootout stops to rob hosts Cameroon of their chance of spot in the final on Thursday and despite the potential return of Mohamed El Shenawy, Gabal warrants his chance to help Egypt to glory on Sunday.

Kalidou Koulibaly vs Mohamed Abdelmonem

Image: Kalidou Koulibaly is Senegal's defensive rock

Like Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly didn’t make his first AFCON appearance until Senegal’s 0-0 draw with Malawi owing to COVID-19 complications, yet has been a solid performer at the heart of the defence. Only Edmond Tapsoba (8) has made more accurate long balls than Koulibaly (7.8) of all outfielders at the competition so far and the Senegal captain’s ability to get the ball upfield quickly has helped set Senegal on the front foot when he has featured.

Also like Mendy, Koulibaly will perhaps be the quieter of the two main centre-backs in Sunday’s final, at least in terms of defending his goal, with Mohamed Abdelmonem stepping into the breach for Egypt with aplomb. The absence of Ahmed Hegazy is a blow for the Pharoahs, yet Abdelmonem has shone at the back for Carlos Queiroz’s side.

The 23-year-old’s proactive approach to defending means Egypt have conceded just one goal from open play at AFCON, a fine return as they approach their seventh game of the tournament, with Abdelmonem making and an average of 2.8 clearances per 90. The youngster is clearly more than capable of batting away everything the Senegal attack throws at the Egypt goal.

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Ahead of the AFCON final live on Sky Sports, we take a look at some of the best moments of a thrilling tournament, featuring Sadio Mane’s delicate chip, Mo Salah’s calmness from the penalty spot and much more!

Nampalys Mendy vs Mohamed Elneny

Image: Mohamed Elneny will look to win the midfield

He can’t break into the Leicester squad this season, but Nampalys Mendy has been vital in Senegal’s progression to the AFCON final. Mendy has registered just 62 minutes of game time for the Foxes, yet has started four of Senegal’s six games, totalling 342 minutes of action.

Mendy’s distribution allows Senegal to dominate opponents – a 57.8% possession average is the fifth-best at AFCON – with the 29-year-old’s pass success rate of 90.4% the seventh-best of those to have started three or more matches. With a pass accuracy of 90.2%, Mohamed Elneny features three places below Mendy in this metric.

Like Mendy and Leicester, Elneny has struggled for regular minutes for Arsenal this season, registering more minutes for Egypt (585) than the Gunners (424) in 2021/22. If Egypt are to upset the odds and beat Senegal, then Elneny will need to maximise his passing qualities to ensure the Lions of Teranga attack has little chance of going for goal.

Bamba Dieng vs Omar Marmoush

Image: Senegal's Bamba Dieng, right, celebrates scoring

Despite registering just 153 minutes of AFCON action, only Sadio Mane (3) has scored more goals for Senegal than Bamba Dieng (2) at the tournament. The 21-year-old marked just his first start at the competition with a decisive strike in their 3-1 win over Burkina Faso and while Ismaila Sarr is also battling to join Mane and Famara Diedhiou on the frontline, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Dieng given the nod on the flank against Egypt.

Dieng isn’t the only young winger aiming to leave a lasting impression at AFCON, with Omar Marmoush looking to repay the faith shown in him by Carlos Queiroz. The VfB Stuttgart winger is yet to directly contribute to a goal for Egypt at the competition, but Quieroz has stuck with Marmoush on the flank despite the availability of the more experienced Trezeguet.

The 22-year-old has played the full 90 minutes in Cameroon just the once, so his spot in the side is perhaps up for grabs, but Marmoush’s industrious approach means opponents don’t have much time on the ball to settle. Indeed only Mostafa Mohamed (2.7) is committing more fouls per game than Marmoush (2.5), the level with fellow attacker Mohamed Salah, and this tactic evidently disrupts the rhythm of any team in their way. Expect more of the same from Egypt on Sunday.