Friday, Feb 17, 2023 03:53 PM
The Egyptian U-20 national team, nicknamed the Young Pharaohs, are one of the 12 teams competing at this year’s TotalEnergies U-20 Africa Cup of Nations which kicks off from February 19 to March 11, 2023.
The tournament will be played across three cities: Cairo, Ismailia and Alexandria.
The Young Pharaohs will enjoy home support as they search for their fifth continental crown in the TotalEnergies U-20 Africa Cup of Nations.
Egypt enters the tournament with two goals, the first is to book a ticket to the FIFA U-20 World Cup, and the second is to win the biennial jamboree with the support of the home faithful.
They were drawn in Group A, along with Mozambique, Senegal and Nigeria, and they will play all their group stage matches at Cairo International Stadium.
History in U-20 AFCON
Egypt has a rich history in the tournament, and they will be looking to continue that rich history on home soil when they welcome the 11 countries that have qualified for the TotalEnergies U-20 Africa Cup of Nations.
They won the tournament in 2013 on penalties against Ghana to make it four U-20 AFCON titles following their successes in 1981, 1991 and 2003.
The Pharaohs have one silver medal to their name in 2005 and three bronze titles having finished third in 1993, 2001 and 2011 respectively.
Local Football
The Egyptian top tier league is considered the strongest local championship in Africa due to its competitive nature. It has some of Africa’s biggest teams in Al-Ahly and their local rivals Zamalek.
Al Ahly have won 10 TotalEnergies CAF Champions League titles while Zamalek have also won both the Champions and Confederation Cup.
Egyptian teams have had a good record in the continental tournaments and recently Pyramids also made their presence felt in the league and CAF competitions.
The Coach
Mahmoud Gaber is the man tasked to oversee the Egyptian side in the 23rd edition of the tournament. The former Ismaily player has been working with his charges for the past months at home with selected friendlies to finetune his boys for the task ahead.
He will be hoping to guide the Pharaohs to another continental triumph when they kick off the tournament against Mozambique at 16h00 local time (14:00 GMT) on 19 February at the Cairo International Stadium.
* Players to watch.*
The home fans will be supporting their team during the tournament and some of them will be hoping to see their talented players perform when the tournament kicks off.
Arab Contractors defender Omar Fayed is one of the star defenders in the team and coach Mahmoud Gaber will be counting on him to protect his goal.
Karim El-Debis of Al Ahly and Panathinaikos’ Bilal Mazharthe are also players to watch from the Egyptian side during the tournament.
Match Schedule (Group A)
19 February: Egypt – Mozambique, 16h00 local time, Cairo Stadium, Cairo
22 February: Nigeria – Egypt, 19h00 local time, Cairo Stadium, Cairo
25 February: Egypt – Senegal, 19h00 local time, Cairo Stadium, Cairo
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