Egypt will target a revenge victory over Ghana when the teams meet in Alexandria on Sunday evening for a 2018 World Cup qualifier. The match will be staged at the Borg El Arab Stadium outside of Alexandria, kick-off at 18h00.
While Egypt got their Group E campaign off to a great start by defeating Congo away from home last month, Ghana were held to a goalless draw at home by Uganda, immediately setting them back in their quest to secure a fourth successive qualification.
The Pharaohs will be determined to get one over the Black Stars, having suffered a heavy aggregate defeat at the hands of the West Africans back in 2013 in the final leg of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Egypt coach Hector Cuper has admitted that the 6-1 defeat to Ghana in the 2014 qualifiers is in the minds of his players, but he trusts them to produce a winning performance this weekend.
“I am not a magician. There is no one way to win. I trust my players who are determined to clinch the three points,” Cuper said at a press conference.
“I can’t drop the players who played the 6-1 game because of that. I trust my squad and we are confident in our abilities to win. Ghana is a big team but the 6-1 result [against them in 2013] was exceptional and rarely happens in football.”
Ghana manager Avram Grant remains optimistic that his side will reach Russia 2018, despite the disappointment of their two dropped points in the last game against Uganda.
“Our target is to do a lot of good things to be on top of the world. I was in the qualification to the World Cup with Israel, even though we were a small team, we miss it only with two goals even when we had France, Switzerland and Ireland. Now it’s in Africa and I am in Ghana and that is what I want,” said Grant.
Egypt and Ghana have clashed in 20 official international matches according to FIFA’s statistics. The Pharaohs have claimed nine wins compared to six for the Black Stars. This World Cup qualifier will also serve as a preview for the teams’ group stage clash in the upcoming 2017 Africa Cup of Nations.
The other Group E match this weekend sees Uganda host Congo in Kampala on Saturday afternoon, kick-off at 15h00 CAT.
