Egypt booked their place in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations after defeating Benin 3-1 after extra time on Monday at the Grand Stade d’Agadir, following a Round of 16 encounter that remained finely balanced for long periods.

Well organised and fearless, the Cheetahs caused the Pharaohs serious problems in the first half. Solid defensively and dangerous on the counter-attack, Benin relied on the energy of the likes of Jodel Dossou, while goalkeeper Dandjinou produced several crucial saves.

Egypt, despite the presence of Mohamed Salah, struggled to find space and went into the break unable to break the deadlock.

After the restart, the Pharaohs gradually increased the tempo. In the 69th minute, Marwan Attia opened the scoring with a powerful strike from the edge of the box, finishing off a move initiated down the right by Salah. Benin refused to surrender and, in the 83rd minute, Dossou capitalised on a defensive error to equalise and force extra time.

In the additional time, Egypt’s experience eventually proved decisive. In the 97th minute, Yasser Ibrahim restored Egypt’s lead with a looping header from a cross delivered from the right flank. Benin attempted to respond, committing their remaining energy forward, but were left exposed late on.

In the closing moments of the match, Salah put the result beyond doubt by finishing a counter-attack to score Egypt’s third goal and seal the Pharaohs’ qualification.

Egypt will face the winner of the tie between Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso in the quarter-finals.

Egypt coach Hossam Hassan reflected, “It was a very difficult match. Before the game, I said there are no easy teams, and Benin were a tough opponent. We work to analyse every opponent in order to adapt our game. Egypt is a great football team and I want to make my people happy.”

Courtesy of CafOnline.com