Preview: Egypt vs Ivory Coast

voldemort · 02-07-2008, 10:37 AM

A historic couple of days are beckoning, as we’re down to the final four games of what has been a very fruitful African Cup of Nations.
Past performances will mean nothing come Thursday’s games, as only two of the four competing teams will pass through to the final of CAN 2008, with the main highlight being the game between cup-holders Egypt and the Elephants of Côte d'Ivoire.
It’s been two years since the last competitive game between these two sides, back on Egyptian soil, with The Pharaohs beating The Elephants dramatically on penalties in front of a rapturous home crowd.
The Ivorians have eyed revenge ever since, and the stalemate friendly between the two sides in France aside, this will be the ultimate chance for payback. In the meantime, the Egyptians will be looking to prove any doubters wrong and show the Ivoirians why they are the reigning champions of Africa.
It’s been a fairytale story for the cup-holders Egypt, coming into the tournament with many people writing them off, predicting that they were way past their best.
Yet they managed to surprise even the harshest of critics with superb performances throughout the tournament, most notably against Cameroon. They then slowly but surely progressed, now reaching the semis, with only one small step required to seal the giant leap into the finals as firm favourites to retain their title.
As for the Ivory Coast, with many of their players plying their trade amongst Europe’s elite clubs, they for one were a team with bags of attitude and quality, just needing that winning mentality as a team, having only won the tournament once back in 1992.
It is no wonder though why most people would bet their homes on the Ivoirians grabbing hold of the cup this time around, with the team having an almost perfect squad, and they have not disappointed thus far; beating every team on their way to the semis with almost unbelievable ease.
Egyptian veteran manager Hassan Shehata will have a dilemma on his hands come kick off time as due to the seemingly lower performances against Zambia and Angola; Shehata will be likely to opt for the same line-up as the Angola match, with the main difference coming in the midfield area with the news of the injury of Middlesbrough’s Mohamed Shawky upsetting the Egyptian side's balance.
Who will be slotting in instead of the Middlesbrough man, and will he be as effective? Only time will tell. Wael Gomaa has been putting in some eye-catching performances and is most certain to lead the defensive line against the expected barrage of attacks coming from the Elephants' stampede.
The same formation and playing style of a 3-4-3 onto a 3-5-2 will most likely be deployed in Thursday’s game for maximum efficiency.
Stand-in coach Gerard Gili is having a field day with the crop of amazing and versatile players at his disposal. There is Chelsea’s strike partnership of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, that has been working ever so efficiently along with the likes of the Toure brothers and Zokora’s midfield and defensive presence.
This could definitely be one of the matches of the tournament, if not the best. Egypt’s manager Shehata has been coy in honouring his opponents, yet stating that the match is there for the taking, with his side having enough confidence to retain the cup.
On the hand, Arsenal ace Emmanuel Eboue has been quick to state his side’s intentions of avenging a loss to an Egyptian side who denied them their second African Nations Cup two years ago.
TEAM NEWS
Egypt
It’s been a mixed bag of fortunes for Egypt during the past two days, with news of a bust up between Mohamed Zidan and manager Hassan Shehata, though it is now reported Zidan sat out the Angola match only due to a minor injury.
The star striker is nevertheless in doubt for Thursday’s game, as he will undergo a fitness test to determine whether he will be able to participate.
Another distressing piece of news is that of Mohamed Shawky’s injury in the Angola match. He is now likely to miss the match according to the latest reports. All other players are fit and ready for action.
Ivory Coast
Gerard Gili will have all his players to choose from, with the only concern being the tired legs of players who are playing week in week out in their clubs and now dealing with the high frequency of games in this tournament. Surely, though, he will know that against such lethal opposition he cannot afford to rest any of his best players.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Egypt
Mohamed Abu Treika - Again it’s at the hardest of times where true fighting spirits emerge, and there is no harder nor more exciting time beckoning than the semi-finals of the CAN, it is now time for the Egyptian magician to pull some rabbits out of his hat.
Zambia
Didier Drogba – No matter if your team’s got Kalou, Kone, Dindane or Yaya, there’s still room for one more ace, one of the best strikers not just in Africa, but in the world, and after his awards snub he will no doubt be looking to light up the continent on the grandest of stages on Thursday.
PREDICTION
This is going to be one match to remember for football fanatics worldwide. Direct, end-to-end, non-stop attacking football from both sides is assured; but unless Egypt pull off a performance of similar efficiency and power as they did against Cameroon in the tournament opener, they’ll be in for a rude awakening. Egypt are likely to hold off Ivory Coast for a good part of the match, but we will most probably see the Ivorians edge out the Egyptians, and killing the game off with a decisive goal in the last twenty minutes.
Egypt 1 – 3 Ivory Coast

source:goal.com

02-07-2008, 10:37 AM	#1 (permalink)
voldemort Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 6,890	Preview: Egypt vs Ivory Coast A historic couple of days are beckoning, as we’re down to the final four games of what has been a very fruitful African Cup of Nations. Past performances will mean nothing come Thursday’s games, as only two of the four competing teams will pass through to the final of CAN 2008, with the main highlight being the game between cup-holders Egypt and the Elephants of Côte d'Ivoire. It’s been two years since the last competitive game between these two sides, back on Egyptian soil, with The Pharaohs beating The Elephants dramatically on penalties in front of a rapturous home crowd. The Ivorians have eyed revenge ever since, and the stalemate friendly between the two sides in France aside, this will be the ultimate chance for payback. In the meantime, the Egyptians will be looking to prove any doubters wrong and show the Ivoirians why they are the reigning champions of Africa. It’s been a fairytale story for the cup-holders Egypt, coming into the tournament with many people writing them off, predicting that they were way past their best. Yet they managed to surprise even the harshest of critics with superb performances throughout the tournament, most notably against Cameroon. They then slowly but surely progressed, now reaching the semis, with only one small step required to seal the giant leap into the finals as firm favourites to retain their title. As for the Ivory Coast, with many of their players plying their trade amongst Europe’s elite clubs, they for one were a team with bags of attitude and quality, just needing that winning mentality as a team, having only won the tournament once back in 1992. It is no wonder though why most people would bet their homes on the Ivoirians grabbing hold of the cup this time around, with the team having an almost perfect squad, and they have not disappointed thus far; beating every team on their way to the semis with almost unbelievable ease. Egyptian veteran manager Hassan Shehata will have a dilemma on his hands come kick off time as due to the seemingly lower performances against Zambia and Angola; Shehata will be likely to opt for the same line-up as the Angola match, with the main difference coming in the midfield area with the news of the injury of Middlesbrough’s Mohamed Shawky upsetting the Egyptian side's balance. Who will be slotting in instead of the Middlesbrough man, and will he be as effective? Only time will tell. Wael Gomaa has been putting in some eye-catching performances and is most certain to lead the defensive line against the expected barrage of attacks coming from the Elephants' stampede. The same formation and playing style of a 3-4-3 onto a 3-5-2 will most likely be deployed in Thursday’s game for maximum efficiency. Stand-in coach Gerard Gili is having a field day with the crop of amazing and versatile players at his disposal. There is Chelsea’s strike partnership of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, that has been working ever so efficiently along with the likes of the Toure brothers and Zokora’s midfield and defensive presence. This could definitely be one of the matches of the tournament, if not the best. Egypt’s manager Shehata has been coy in honouring his opponents, yet stating that the match is there for the taking, with his side having enough confidence to retain the cup. On the hand, Arsenal ace Emmanuel Eboue has been quick to state his side’s intentions of avenging a loss to an Egyptian side who denied them their second African Nations Cup two years ago. TEAM NEWS Egypt It’s been a mixed bag of fortunes for Egypt during the past two days, with news of a bust up between Mohamed Zidan and manager Hassan Shehata, though it is now reported Zidan sat out the Angola match only due to a minor injury. The star striker is nevertheless in doubt for Thursday’s game, as he will undergo a fitness test to determine whether he will be able to participate. Another distressing piece of news is that of Mohamed Shawky’s injury in the Angola match. He is now likely to miss the match according to the latest reports. All other players are fit and ready for action. Ivory Coast Gerard Gili will have all his players to choose from, with the only concern being the tired legs of players who are playing week in week out in their clubs and now dealing with the high frequency of games in this tournament. Surely, though, he will know that against such lethal opposition he cannot afford to rest any of his best players. PLAYERS TO WATCH Egypt Mohamed Abu Treika - Again it’s at the hardest of times where true fighting spirits emerge, and there is no harder nor more exciting time beckoning than the semi-finals of the CAN, it is now time for the Egyptian magician to pull some rabbits out of his hat. Zambia Didier Drogba – No matter if your team’s got Kalou, Kone, Dindane or Yaya, there’s still room for one more ace, one of the best strikers not just in Africa, but in the world, and after his awards snub he will no doubt be looking to light up the continent on the grandest of stages on Thursday. PREDICTION This is going to be one match to remember for football fanatics worldwide. Direct, end-to-end, non-stop attacking football from both sides is assured; but unless Egypt pull off a performance of similar efficiency and power as they did against Cameroon in the tournament opener, they’ll be in for a rude awakening. Egypt are likely to hold off Ivory Coast for a good part of the match, but we will most probably see the Ivorians edge out the Egyptians, and killing the game off with a decisive goal in the last twenty minutes. Egypt 1 – 3 Ivory Coast source:goal.com

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