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Egypt survive Benin scare to advance to AFCON quarter finals

football05 January 2026 19:00| © Backpage TXT
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Egypt advanced to the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) quarterfinals with a 3-1 win over Benin in extra time in a tightly contested affair at the Stade Adrar in Agadir on Monday.

The Pharaohs were given a run for their money, but will advance to the tournament’s quarterfinals for an 11th time.

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Benin’s run at the tournament comes to an end as the Cheetahs will have to wait for a second victory from open play at the tournament.

Egypt nearly struck in the eighth minute as Mohamed Salah unleashed Omar Marmoush with a beautiful through-ball from his own half. However, Marmoush failed to beat the rushing Marcel Dandjinou one-on-one, who did well to stop what should have been an opening goal for the Pharaohs.

Benin’s first chance of the game came from Junior Olaitan’s 17th minute freekick. The 23-year-old fired a strike from distance towards the Egyptian goal, but his effort made for a routine save for Mohamed El Shenawy.

The Pharaohs miss another chance to take the lead in the 20th minute. Mohamed Hamdi made a run down the left side of the box, crossing into Salah. The Liverpool forward was swamped by defenders and was unable to finish at the near post, and Yohan Roche cleared Marmoush’s follow up in the mouth of the goal.

The Cheetahs suffered a big loss in the 32nd minute as striker Aiyegun Tosin was forced off the pitch due to injury, replaced by Jodel Dossou.

Salah produced another dangerous through-ball in the 36th minute, bypassing the midfield to find Marmoush. However, the Manchester City star was dispossessed on the breakaway by a physical piece of defending from Mohamed Tijani.

The Pharaohs also lost an important member of their starting line-up as Hamdi was stretchered off after a collision with Rodolfo Aloko, injuring his leg as he landed from an aerial challenge. The defender was replaced by Ahmed Abou El Fotouh in stoppage time.

The Cheetahs began the second half in threatening fashion, forcing Hamdy Fathy to race back and intercept a dangerous through-ball in the

Egypt missed a huge chance to go ahead in the 55th minute. The Pharaohs’ corner fell to Rami Rabia in front of goal but his attempt to poke the ball home came off Dandjinou and was blocked from crossing the line by Tamimou Ouorou.

In the 63rd minute, substitute Zizo played a dink over the top of Benin’s defence for Salah, whose chip attempt was read perfectly by Dandjinou, denying the two-time CAF Men’s Player of the Year.

On the other end, The Cheetahs miss an opportunity of their own a minute later. Ouorou played a perfectly weighted ball into the box for Dossou, who was denied from close range by El Shenawy.

Egypt finally broke the deadlock in the 69th minute through a spectacular strike from midfielder Marwan Attia. Mohamed Hany cut the ball back from the byline to the edge of the area and Attia thumped the ball into the top left corner.

Benin struck back in scrappy fashion in the 83rd minute as El Shenawy did well to keep out Olaitan’s cross, which came at the goal. However, he could not get the ball away from his line, allowing Dossou to prod it into the back of the net.

The Pharaohs retook the lead in the 97th minute, in extra time, courtesy of defender Yasser Ibrahim. Marwan Attia found Ibrahim in the area, who sent a looping header over Dandjinou who, despite his best effort, could not keep the ball out of the net

The Cheetahs had an opportunity from a free kick in the 112th minute but Tijani’s shot from a layoff could not find the target.

Salah bagged a tenth AFCON goal in the 124th minute, becoming the third Egyptian player to do so. Benin failed to create anything from a corner, sending Salah on the breakaway, catching Dandjinou well out of place and scoring from distance.

Egypt will return to the Stade Adrar on Saturday to face the winner of Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso’s clash in the quarterfinals.

Egypt (0) 3 (Attia 69’, Ibrahim 97’, Salah 120+4’)

Benin (0) 1 (Dossou 83’)

Egypt: M. El Shenawy, M. Hany, Y. Ibrahim, R. Rabia, M. Hamdy (A. Fotouh 45+1), M. Attia, H. Fathy, I. Adel (A. Sayed 59’), M. Salah, O. Marmoush (M. Mohamed119’), Trézéguet (E. Ashour 59’).

Benin: M. Dandjinou, Y. Roche (M. Ahlinvi 106’), M. Tijani, O. Verdon, T. Ouorou, H. Imourane (G. Ahoudo 106’), S. D'Almeida (S. Attidjikou 77’), D. Dokou (O. Tessilimi 77’), J. Olaitan, T. Aiyegun (J. Dossou 32’), R. Aloko (R. Amoussou 90+2’)

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