Egypt extended their undefeated streak in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON 2025) as they defeated title holders Côte d'Ivoire 3-2 at Le Grand Stade Agadir on Saturday, setting up a semi-final showdown with Senegal.
Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush opened the scoring for Egypt early in the first half, followed by defender Rami Rabia doubling the lead just two minutes after the half-hour mark.
Liverpool star Mohamed Salah added a third goal in the 52nd minute to net his 11th AFCON goal and equal Hossam Hassan's record in the tournament. Côte d'Ivoire managed to respond with an own goal from defender Ahmed Fatouh and a second goal from Guela Doue in the 73rd minute.
Having reached their 17th semi-final, the Pharaohs will look for revenge against Senegal who beat them in the 2021 AFCON final.
Early goal
Egypt coach Hossam Hassan made three changes to his regular starting lineup, introducing Ahmed Fatouh for the injured Mohamed Hamdy, Emam Ashour in midfield over Ibrahim Adel, and defender Hossam Abdel-Maguid for Mahmoud Trezeguet.
The game began with both sides testing the waters, but the deadlock was broken after just four minutes, as midfielder Emam Ashour dispossessed an opponent and threaded a brilliant pass to Marmoush, who found space inside the box to fire a right-footed shot into the bottom corner.
Following the goal, Côte d'Ivoire pressed forward in search of an equalizer, but their attempts were thwarted by Egypt's well-organized defense.
The Elephants controlled possession, with Manchester United winger Amad Diallo posing a significant threat to the Pharaohs’ backline.
In the 17th minute, Diallo attempted to create danger, receiving a good cross into the box, but his shot was deflected by the defense.
Four minutes later, Egypt nearly doubled their lead when defender Hossam Abdel-Maguid rose above the defense to meet a corner kick from Salah, but his header sailed over the bar.
Côte d'Ivoire responded two minutes later, with striker Guessand heading the ball from inside the box, but it missed wide of the right post.
In the 32nd minute, Rabia outjumped Côte d'Ivoire’s defense to meet Salah’s accurate corner kick, heading the ball into the bottom-right corner.
Despite Côte d'Ivoire's dominance in possession, they struggled to create clear scoring opportunities. Five minutes before halftime, Ashour committed a foul that led to an own goal by Fatouh, giving Côte d'Ivoire a lifeline. A minute before the break, Marmoush nearly added a third for Egypt during a counterattack, but Côte d'Ivoire's defense cleared the danger, ending the first half with Egypt leading 2-1.
Second-half thriller
Both teams started the second half cautiously, with Côte d'Ivoire applying light pressure.
Seven minutes in, Rabia sent a long ball to Ashour, who delivered a brilliant low pass into the box for Salah, with the Liverpool star slotting it home from close range, bringing his Africa Cup of Nations tally to 11 and equaling the record of his coach, Hossam Hassan.
Just before the hour mark, Salah set up defender Mohamed Hany in a one-on-one situation with goalkeeper Fofana, who blocked Hany’s shot, as midfielder Marwan Attia followed up the rebound, but the ball went out for a corner.
Côte d'Ivoire pushed forward to narrow the gap, with midfielder Franck Kessie firing a shot from near the edge of the box that flew just over the bar.
In the 73rd minute, Guela Doue capitalized on a scramble in Egypt’s defense to slot the ball past goalkeeper El-Shenawy following a corner kick.
Twelve minutes before the final whistle, coach Hossam Hassan freshened up his frontline by introducing Mahmoud ‘Trezeguet’ Hassan, who had recovered from injury, as a replacement for Ashour.
In the closing minutes, Côte d'Ivoire continued to dominate possession and piled pressure on Egypt’s defense, but they failed to pose a real threat to El-Shenawy.
Egypt will face Senegal in the semi-finals of the tournament on Wednesday, following the Teranga Lions' 1-0 victory over Mali.
(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)