Full time: Egypt 2-1 Cote d'Ivoire
Scorers: Karim El-Eraqi 37, Ramadan Sobhi 114/ Aboubacar Doumbia 89 

The referee blows his final whistle, Egypt win the U23 Nations Cup!

117' Egypt are close  to winning the U23 Nations Cup for the first time. Can they hold on in the remaining three minutes? 

114' Ramadan Sobhi scores a precious goal with six minutes remaining, drilling a low shot into an empty net after a low shot from substitute Rayyan was pushed by the keeper into his path. 

114' GOOOOOOOOOOOAL FOR EGYPT!!!

110' An Ivorian free-kick is floated into the area, with two forwards just failing to get on the end of it. 

109' Egypt make a double substitution. Ahmed Rayyan replaces Ammar Hamdi and Mahmoud El-Gazzar replaces Abdel-Rahman Magdi. 

107' Salah Mohsen wastes a chance! He heads wide following a fine cross from left-back Ahmed Aboul-Fotouh. 

The second half of extra time is underway 

The referee blows his whistle 

105+1' Substitute Salah Mohsen fails to make the most of a dangerous Egypt breakaway as he dithers on the ball! 

105' Koffi Kouao is awarded a dangerous free kick on the right. 

103' Egypt resort to innocuous long balls that are no trouble to the Ivorian defence. 

100' Egypt piling on pressure.

97' A shot from Ammar Hamdi is collected by Cote d'Ivoire keeper Tape. 

94' A howler by the keeper almost costs Egypt! Mohamed Sobhi fumbles at a tame shot but redeems himself to produce a superb save and thwart the rebound. 

92' Salah Mohsen breaks clear but is flagged offside! 

92' Egypt keeper Sobhi collects a cross from Koffi. Cote d'Ivoire neat interply down the right is causing menace to Egypt's defence. 

The first half of extra time is underway 

The referee blows his whistle, we are now heading to extra time! 

90+1' Salah Mohsen tries to muscle his way into the area after an Egyptian counter attack, but he is thwarted by the defence. 

89' Zie Ouattara exchanges passes with Traore on the right and sends in a low cross which finds the unmarked Doumbia, who side-foots home with his first touch as Egypt pay for easing off when it mattered most! 

89' GOAL FOR COTE D'IVOIRE!

88' The resulting free-kick strikes the defensive wall. 

87' Egypt's left wing-back Ahmed Aboul-Fotouh is booked for committing a foul on the edge of the area. 

83' Traore's cross from the right goes out as Cote d'Ivoire push forward in the dying minutes. 

81' Egypt make their first substitution; striker Mostafa Mohamed makes way for forward Salah Mohsen. 

76' Cote d'Ivoire's Edgard Dakoi receives a yellow card for an aerial challenge on Akram Tawfik. 

74' A chance for Egypt at the other end! El-Eraki almost scores his second of the night after a pull-back from Abdel-Rahman Magdi but his effort goes wide. 

71' The Ivorians miss a golden chance!! Traore beats the offside trap to collect a through pass unmarked and swivel, only to send his shot across the area and out for a goal kick.

70' A rare chance for Cote d'Ivoire! Substitute Doumbia sends a long-range bouncing shot that is pushed by the keeper for a corner. 

69' A cross from Ramadan Sobhi goes straight into the hands of keeper Ira Tape.

68' Cote d'Ivoire make their second substitution; Doumbia replaces Amani. 

66' Egypt remain in control, albeit without creating much in the final third. 

62' Egypt are displaying some flowing football; they look capable of doubling their lead. 

58' The tempo slows down. Egypt remain comfortable at the back! 

54' Cote d'Ivoire make their first substitution, Koffi Kouao replaces Timite. 

53' Egypt are back on the attack, pegging the Ivorians back. 

50' Cote d'Ivoire's Jean Amani receives a yellow card for a foul on Ammar Hamdi. 

48' Cote d'Ivoire are expected to mount pressure in the early stages of the second half. 

The second half is underway 

The referee blows his halftime whistle 

45+1' A low shot from Timite strikes the defence. 

43' A cunning, angled Ivorian free-kick from Gnaka strikes the post! Egypt are pegged back after going ahead.   

40' A shot from Cheikh Timite is blocked by the defence after some good work from Hamed Traore on the left.  

37' Sobhi's skills are just what Egypt needed to break the deadlock! The impressive winger gets the better of Koffi Dakoi on the left and pulls the ball back to the onrushing Karim El-Eraqi, who makes no mistake with a first-time low shot that goes past the keeper. 

37' GOOOOOOOOOOAL FOR EGYPT!!

36' Egypt need Sobhi's spark to unlock the tight Ivorian defence! 

32' Cote d'Ivoire sit back to soak up Egyptian pressure. 

26' Ramadan Sobhi makes a jinking run down the right and muscles his way towards the byline, but his low cross is parried away by the keeper. 

24' Cote d'Ivoire also have a penalty claim waved away by the referee for an apparent challenge by Egypt defender Mohamed Abdel-Salam on Youssef Dao. 

23' A neat exchange between Ramadan Sobhi and Ahmed Ramadan on the left is intercepted as Egypt pile on pressure. 

19' Egypt create their first real chance! Ammar Hamdi robs a defender inside the area and provides a low cross, which is pushed by the keeper into the path of striker Mostafa Mohamed, whose volley is blocked by a defender. Egypt's appeals for a penalty are waved away by the referee. It's not clear if the ball had struck the arm of the defender. 

17' Karim El-Eraqi ruins a promising chance! The right wing-back neatly controls a long ball to skip past his challenger in the area but his poor low cross is easily gathered by the keeper. 

14' Cote d'Ivoire defend in numbers as Egypt probe the defence. 

11' Egypt have the better possession but there are no clear-cut chances so far. 

4' Ramadan makes a timely interception to clear a low shot from Cote d'Ivoire's Silas Gnaka. 

2' a long-range shot from Egypt's Ahmed Ramadan goes wide. 


The match is underway 

Egypt's starting line-up:

Mohamed Sobhi - Ossama Galal, Mohamed Abdel-Salam, Ahmed Ramadan - Karim El-Eraky, Akram Tawfik, Ahmed Aboul-Fotouh - Ramadan Sobhi, Abdel-Rahman Magdi, Amar Hamdi, Mostafa Mohamed

Cote d'Ivoire's starting line-up:
Ira Tape, Silas Gnaka, Kouadio Dabila, Zie Ouattara, Koffi Dakoi, Aboubakar Keita, Ismael Diallo, Jean Amani, Cheikh Timite, Hamed Traore, Youssef Dao

19:00 Egypt coach Gharib sticks to the same line-up which beat South Africa in the semi-final. 

18:30 The closing ceremony will begin shortly. Egypt's famous singer Tamer Hosny will perform tonight!

17:30 The stadium is already packed as South Africa play Ghana in the third-place playoff. Supporters are buzzing with excitement! 

16:30 Egyptian fans started marching to Cairo stadium to support U23 national team in the Africa Cup of Nations final against Cote d'Ivoire

15:45 Egypt U23 coach Shawky Gharib hopes his team maintains its victorious path in the Africa Cup of Nations, while at the same time fans enjoy Friday's final against Cote d’Iviore.
"We are playing an important game concerning Egypt's football reputation. Four months ago we left this stadium crying after being eliminated from 2019 AFCON. So it's important to perform with greatness in this final," Gharib told a pre-game press conference Thursday.

15:00 Egyptian sports minister Ashraf Sobhy held a meeting with the U23 national team players on Thursday, asking them to concentrate on the final game to continue their winning run.

14:00 Tazkarti, which is responsible for distributing tickets for the African Under-23 Championship,  announced that all the tickets of Friday's final game has been sold out with Cairo international stadium's capacity is more than 70.000 attendances

12:30 Egypt will be aiming to continue their winning run in the competition and win the title for the first time in the country's history after reaching with a 3-0 win over South Africa in the semis on Tuesday.

11:00 Already qualified for next year's Olympic Games in Tokyo, Egypt and Cote d'Ivoire will be looking for another achievement as they chase the competition's title at Cairo Stadium.

Venue: Cairo International Stadium

Referee: Andofetra Rakotojaona (Madagascar)

Check the match preview here

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