Two of the most successful nations in the continent go head to head in Group B of the Africa Cup of Nations   when Egypt  take on Ghna at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny on Thursday.

While both nations are favourites to make it out of the group on paper, a disappointing opening-day outing has put them under pressure to get the result here and we anticipate an action-packed contest.

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Record seven-time African champions Egypt were on the cusp of one of the biggest upsets in the opening round of the 2023 AFCON as they found themselves trailing to Mozambique in the final minutes of stoppage time.

Ranked 111th in the latest FIFA World Rankings, Mozambique turned in a superb team performance as Witi  and Clesio Bauque   struck in a three-minute spell to cancel out Mostafa Mohammed’s   first-half opener and put Os Mambas 2-1 up.

However, Liverpool star  Mohamed Salah  came up clutch for the Pharaohs as he kept his cool under pressure and converted his 97th-minute penalty to spare their blushes and force a share of the spoils.

Prior to that, Egypt were on a three-game winning streak — scoring 10 goals and keeping three clean sheets — a run which has seen them rise to first place in Group A of the World Cup qualifiers.

With Sunday’s result,Rui Vitoria’s   men have gone six consecutive games without defeat across all competitions, claiming four wins and two draws since last September’s 3-1 friendly defeat against Tunisia, and will now look to avoid failing to win their opening two games at the AFCON finals for the first time in over three decades.

The last time that Egypt failed to win their first two group-stage games at the tournament came in 1992, when they kicked off the campaign with a 1-0 loss to Zambia before suffering a 1-0 defeat against Thursday’s opponents Ghana.

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The Black Stars enjoyed a smooth qualifying campaign as they finished as one of just three unbeaten nations, claiming three wins and three draws to pick up 12 points and clinch top spot in Group E.

However, they would suffer an even worse fate than Egypt in their group curtain-raiser as they fell to a shock 2-1 defeat at the hands of rank outsiders Cape Verde on Sunday evening.

Alexander Djiku grabbed his first goal for Ghana shortly before the hour mark to cancel out Jamiro Monteiro’s   first-half opener, but Garry Rodrigues  struck in the 92nd minute to hand the Blue Sharks a deserved victory.

This was another dismal AFCON result for the four-time champions, who have now failed to win any of their last five matches in the tournament, losing three and claiming two draws since picking up a 2-0 victory over Guinea-Bissau in 2019.

Chris Hughton’s  side also suffered defeat in their opening game in Cameroon two years ago, losing 1-0 against Morocco, before they were stunned 3-2 by debutant Comoros, which saw their campaign come to an end in the group stages.

While Ghana will now look to avoid three consecutive AFCON losses for the very first time, they have lost three of their last four games against Egypt, with a 1-1 draw in the World Cup qualifiers back in November 2017 being the exception.

The last two AFCON encounters between the two nations have also seen the West African powerhouse suffer defeat, first in 2010 when they were beaten 1-0 in the final and most recently in 2017, when the Pharaohs picked a 1-0 victory in the group stages.

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Salah was involved in both goals against Mozambique on Sunday, including his 56th international goal, and the Liverpool man will certainly be one to keep an eye out for.

The 31-year-old, who has four goal involvements in his last two games for Egypt, has also been on song for Liverpool this season, scoring 14 goals and setting up eight more in the Premier League, where the Red currently sit top of the table.

Salah should spearhead the Pharaohs’ attack once again, alongside Mohamed and Trabzonspor man Mahmoud Trezeguet , who made his 62nd international appearance at the weekend.

Arsenal man Mohamed Elneny , who has seen just 12 minutes of Premier League action this season, should retain his role in the centre of the park, forming the midfield trio with 29-year-old Hamdi Fathi  and Zamelek’s  Zizo.

Egypt failed to impose themselves at the defensive end of the pitch against Mozambique last time out but we expect Vitoria to name an unchanged back four on Thursday.

That said, Mohamed Abdelmonem  and former West Bromwich Albion man Ahmed Hegazy  should form the centre-back pairing once again, with Mohamed Hany   and Pyramids’ Mohamed Hamdi   taking up the full-back roles.

As for Ghana, they continue to sweat over the fitness of West Ham United forward  Mohammed Kudus, who was a notable absentee in their opening-day defeat against Cape Verde.

Kudus has been in fine form for West Ham, scoring 10 goals and providing one assist across all competitions since his arrival from Ajax in the summer.

Andre Ayew came off the bench in the 62nd minute against Cape Verde to become the first player to feature in eight different AFCON finals and the 34-year-old should start from the bench once again.

Egypt possible starting lineup:
El-Shenawy; Hany, Hegazy, Abdelmonem, Hamdi; Zizo, Elneny, Fathi; Salah, Mohamed, Trezeguet

Ghana possible starting lineup:
Ofori; Odoi, Dijku, Salisu, Mensah; Ashimeru, Baba, Paintsil, Konigsdorffer, J Ayew; Semenyo

Predictions: 2-1

Collins Okinyo

Ex- CAF Media Expert. An expert on African football with over 15 years experience ,always with an ear to the ground with indepth knowledge of the game. I have worked for top publications including 7 years at www.supersport.com until i founded www.soka25east.com to quench the thirst of football lovers across the continent. I have trained young upcoming journalists who are now a voice in African football.I have covered World Cup,AFCON,CHAN,Champions League,Confederations Cup,Cecafa,Cosafa,Wafu and many other football tournaments across the World. Founder Football Africa Arena(FAA),Founder www.afrisportdigital.com