Egypt have put one foot in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after beating Mauritania on the third matchday of the qualifiers.
The Pharaohs entered the game sitting top of Group C with six points from two games and needed only four points to officially secure their spot in Morocco following Cape Verde’s shock defeat to Botswana.
On the other hand, Mauritania had only three points and knew that if they grabbed any points in Cairo, they would move to the second spot.
There was no surprise changes in Hossam Hassan’s squad, with only Ahmed Eid being handed his debut to start at right-back instead of the injured Mohamed Hany.
Egypt XI: Mohamed El-Shennawy, Ahmed Eid, Mohamed Abdelmonem, Rami Rabia, Mohamed Hamdi; Hamdi Fathi, Marwan Ateya, Zizo; Mohamed Salah, Mahmoud Trezeguet, Omar Marmoush.
Egypt wanted to score early with Mauritania’s goalkeeper and the post denying Mohamed Salah’s direct free-kick after just three minutes.
Zizo and Trezeguet also had a couple of dangerous chances from long-range, but the keeper Mamadou Diop was there to save the day for Mauritania.
The visitors also troubled Mohamed El-Shennawy, but the first half eventually ended in a 0-0 draw.
The Pharaohs kept their offensive intent after the break and Marmoush came close to extending his impressive scoring form, but again the keeper was there to deny it.
In the 59th minute, Mohamed Abdelmoneim picked up an injury and was forced off as he was replaced by striker Mostafa Mohamed, with Hamdi Fathi dropping back.
Finally, Egypt managed to break the deadlock through Mahmoud Trezeguet after a scramble inside the box led to the ball falling down to the former Aston Villa man, who unleashed a powerful strike past the keeper.
The goal came in the 69th minute and marked Trezeguet’s 21st international goal in his 77th cap for Egypt.
In the 77th minute, Hossam Hassan brought Mahmoud Saber for his international debut for Ahmed Sayed Zizo.
Two minutes later, Mohamed Salah doubled the lead following an impressive through ball from Marwan Ateya to Mohamed Hamdi, who played a low cross to the Liverpool star for him to beat the keeper.
Nasser Maher, Mostafa Fathi, and Osama Faisal all came on in the added time as Mohamed Salah, Trezeguet, and Omar Marmosuh were given an early rest.
The win kept Egypt top of the group with nine points, six ahead of all three other teams in the group, who all only have three points each.
The Pharaohs now need a draw against Mauritania in Nouakchott on Tuesday, October 15 to officially seal a spot in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.