CAIRO – Egypt U-20 national team coach Mahmoud Gaber expressed his frustration following his team’s barren stalemate against Mozambique in the opening match of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations.
In other match, Senegal defeated Nigeria 1-0 to occupy top spot in Group A in Cairo.
Egypt was kept at bay at the Cairo International Stadium by the Young Os Mambas in their opening Group A match.
The Young Pharaohs will take on Nigeria’s Flying Eagles in the second round of matches on February22 at the Cairo International Stadium.
The first two teams in the three groups will advance to the quarter-finals alongside the two best performances of teams who ended third in the different groups.
The first four teams will represent the continent in the upcoming U-20 World Cup set to be played in Indonesia next May.
Mozambique relied on counter attacks during the match which frustrated the home side leaving the Egypt coach to admit that his side was profligate.
“We are not afraid of facing any team and we were not calm when we had our chances,” Gaber said at his post-match press conference.
“We didn’t focus with our chances and that’s one of the reasons why we failed to win. The Mozambican national team relied on the break and defended well which made it difficult.”
However, the Egyptian coach is pleased with the performance of his team.
Elsewhere, Egypt forward Ahmed Abdel-Hamid is confident the hosts will recover from their draw against Mozambique as they bid to win the title on home soil.
The Zamalek youngster was named the Man of the Match following his impressive performance at the Cairo International Stadium on Sunday.
“We’re all confident that we will be crown champions of the tournament and celebrate it in our home. We want to celebrate with our fans,” Abdel-Hamid said.
Egypt was dominant but couldn’t break down the resolute Mozambican defense who was disciplined inside their area.
“We apologize for the result but we’re confident of winning. We will do our best to win the championship.”
Meanwhile, Mozambique coach Dario Monteiro expressed satisfaction with his Young Os Mambas’ goalless draw with Egypt.
The COSAFA runners-up held their nerves in the closing stages of the highly consented Group A fixture on Sundayto secure a precious point against the hosts at the Cairo International Stadium.
“We’re satisfied with the result against Egypt and it’s an important point for us in the tournament,” Monteiro said after the match.
The Young Pharaohs dominated possession of the match but failed to make best use of their chances. The Mozambicans played on the break as Egypt push more men forward.
This is Mozambique’s second appearance in the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations after qualifying to the last edition in Mauritania two years-ago.
“It was a difficult match, but we are happy with the team’s performance. We defended well and looked dangerous on the counter attack,” Monteiro added.
“Egypt created many chances, but we’re pleased with our performance. We have a good team and we showed that against a strong team. We will fight in every match to realize our objectives in this tournament.”
The hosts came close to breaking the deadlock inside five minutes through Ahmed Abdel-Hamid’s brilliant left footed in swinger that crashed off the post. The Zamalek winger beat his marker down the right channel cutting in to unleash his shot which agonizingly hit the post.
The Young Pharaohs continued to pile more pressure on the COSAFA runners-up who defended their goal.
Captain Karim Hassan’s low teasing cross into the Os Mambas area inadvertently turned towards goal by Aylton Messias as he tried to clear his line, but goalkeeper Joao was able save the danger midway through the first half.
Rafaat Bayoumi was a constant threat on the left giving his opponent a difficult time. The youngster managed to wiggle through his challenger and delivered an inviting cross into the area only Mozambique to clear.
Mozambique had their first sight at the half hour mark through Aylton’s weak header which goalkeeper Moustafa Amin calmly claimed inside the box.
The second half saw both sides being more aggressive in their attacks but lacked the cutting edge to put away their chances.
The pressure mounted on the hosts for not going in front of defender Abohamada mistakenly gave away the ball just outside the box, but Mozambique failed to take advantage.
The two coaches freshened things up with a couple of substitutions as they looked for the opener but neither managed to find the all-important goal.
Mozambique was denied an opportunity by Abohamada’s inch perfect clearance just inside the box with twenty still to play.
The Young Pharaohs had a share of possession in the closing stages, but their dominance failed to produce a goal as Mozambique held on to claim a famous point.
Elsewhere, Soulaymane Faye scored the only goal as Senegal edged Nigeria 1-0 to occupy top spot in Group A.
The CF Talavera striker broke the deadlock five minutes before half time to give coach Malick Daf an opening day victory at the Cairo International Stadium.
The Young Teranga Lions started strong in midfield with Lamine Camara and captain Samba Diallo pulling the strings for the WAFU-A champions.
Senegal made their intentions known from the opening minutes with striker Pape Diallo causing mayhem in the Nigerian box.
The Generation Foot attacker saw his header saved by the Nigerian goalkeeper Nwosu in the half hour mark from Lamine Camara’s inviting delivery.
The Cubs broke the deadlock five minutes before the break courtesy of Sulaymane Faye’s close-range finish. The lanky forward was the quickest to respond to Pape Diop’s low effort which Nwosu turned to his path, and he made no mistake to stick home the opportunity.
The second half was more open as Nigeria pushed for the equalizer, but the Cubs defended well to keep a clean sheet.
Captain Samba Diallo was lively going forward for Senegal and came close to doubling their lead when his diving header missed the bottom corner of the Nigerian goal.
The Flying Eagles were reduced to 10 men following Ahmed Abdullahi’s sending off in the closing stages of the match. The substitute was shown a straight red card for a high foot challenge on a Senegalese.
Senegal missed two late chances to increase their tally through second half substitute Mame Libasse Ngom. The Guediawaye FC forward failed to hit the target twice when he beat the keeper to the ball only to fire over the goal.
