The continent of Africa will come to a stand still to celebrate the end of what we will describe as an" Exciting AFRICAN CUP OF NATIONS". The exciting final would be between Senegal and Egypt. Senegal would be seeking to steal the title from the Pharoahs of Egypt who have more AFCON titles than every other country on the continent.
The final proves to be an exciting encounter as all eyes would be on the Liverpool duo( Sadio Mane and Mo Salah) who won't be playing together as teammates rather would be going head to head against each other, as both players are yet to win the ultimate prize in African Football. Mane came close to winning the title but was quickly sent packing home by Algeria while Mo Salah would remember his country's 2-1 defeat in Gabon by Cameroon. The Question remains who will it be- Sadio Mane or Mo Salah?
Senegal had defeated Burkina Faso 3-1 in what would be considered as an absolute domination by the Senegalese side while Egypt had struggled in the beginning of the competition but found the right energy to power them to the final defeating Cameroon on penalties
We are expecting some personal player battle as Sadio Mane would be up against Mo salah
Mane heading to the final with three goals and two assists and has been named man of the match in four of six games for his country, also holding most dribbles in the tournament than any other player
Mo Salah has not been having alot of fun in Egypt as compared to fun in Liverpool. The formation of the national side is totally different, it is more of a defensive structure with goal attempts coming from counter attacks via Salah's wing. Salah had more goal contributions for his country's team in the tournament and has been their star player and captain. He has the ability to switch the game with any little opportunity as we saw in the tournament with a very powerful assist.
Also there are other players to look out for such as Edouard Mendy who is having such an impressive run in the competition after testing positive to Covid 19 earlier. Mendy is known for his clean sheets and would be a fantastic player in the final show.
The Naples big man Kalidou Koulibaly who is considered as one of the best defenders in the world has been an excellent player and captain for Senegal and would be hoping to defend his country from the attacks of the Pharoahs of Egypt
While we focus on Mo Salah in Egypt, we will not forget the man from Arsenal Mohamed Elneny who seem to be struggling in arsenal, but is having such an exciting time for his country, Elneny would be hoping to completely dominate the midfield .
ROAD TO FINAL
Senegal had an impressive outing in AFCON despite struggling in the group stages. But from the knock out stages fired pass all opposition to reach the final. Senegal would be looking to win their first ever AFCON title
Egypt had a tough start to the start of the tournament after a 1-0 defeat by Nigeria, the Pharoahs of Egypt managed to squeeze in two goals in the three group matches with one goal scored in each of the last two. The round of 16, quarter final and semi final was based on penalties with Egypt making it to the final
HEAD TO HEAD
Egypt and Senegal have played 12 times with the Pharaohs of Egypt winning six while Senegal have won four leaving two draws.
Source of Statistics- [Source]