Egypt winger Mahmoud 'Trezeguet' Hassan stressed that winning the African Cup of Nations title is the main target of the Pharaohs, stressing the Egyptian team respects Benin ahead of Monday’s anticipated game.
The Pharaohs will be facing The Cheetahs in the prestigious tournament's round of 16.
Egypt advanced to the knockout stage after topping Group B with seven points, while Benin progressed as third in Group D with three points, four behind leaders Senegal and DR Congo.
“We followed a lot of Benin games. We respect them and we work hard to deliver our best to please Egyptians,” Trezeguet said in the pre-match press conference on Sunday.
“The national team is here in Morocco with only one target; winning the title and pleasing the fans who support us in all times,” the Ahly player added.
The seven-time African champions have not lifted the trophy since 2010.
They failed to qualify for three consecutive editions in 2012, 2013, and 2015 before returning to the tournament and losing the 2017 final to Cameroon. Egypt reached the final again in 2021 but were beaten by Senegal in a penalty shootout, and their most recent campaign ended in frustration with a round-of-16 exit in 2023.
The 31-year old Trezeguet also hailed the impact of the technical staff headed by coach Hossam Hassan in improving the team’s attack, adding that trainings witness a hard work to get the most benefit of every scoring chance.
“Reaching the goal of opponents in several occasions in previous games is a clear improvement especially as the team didn’t do that before,” he explained.
“We all have one target and united as one family inside the camp to achieve the ambitions of Egyptian fans,” he concluded.
Benin, who reached the round of 16 after ending the group stage in third place of Group D, competed in the tournament five times before, with a record of one win, five draws, and 11 losses across 17 matches.
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