AFCON 2025 Match Preview, Round Of 16: Egypt Vs Benin

It promises to be an exciting encounter today at Stade Adrar in Agadir in the ongoing ongoing AFCON tournament in Morocco, between Egypt and Benin, a round of 16 fixtures between two teams that have never really managed to perform to their full potentials.

More Details

Notwithstanding, they both managed to qualify for the knockout stages, especially Benin as the Cheetahs advanced by virtue of a 1-0 win over Botswana, the lowest-ranked nation at AFCON 2025 and now, they will be up against seven times champions and one of the favorite teams to lift the trophy.

LATEST POSTS

Egypt

For the Pharaohs, they managed to go unbeaten while conceding just one goal in a group that had South Africa, Angola and Zimbabwe but despite topping their group and no loss so far, the Pharoahs know that they have their work cut out for them against an unknown opponent.

If anyone knows the importance of advancing to the next stage, it is their manager, Hossam Hassan, a three-time continental champion as a player in 1986, 1998 and 2006. He and his players will be wary of another early exit after Egypt’s eliminations on home soil at AFCON 2019 and at the last tournament in Ivory Coast.

In Morocco, they should be able to overcome Benin after getting an easy opponent on paper and ahead of this match, while the coach used a back five in the final two group matches against Angola, the former legendary forward could return to a back four for this encounter.

It also means that we will see the return of some of their stars like Omar Marmoush who skipped the last game. However, Mohanad Lasheen’s status is questionable after his withdrawal after 64 minutes in their last game of the group stage with what looked to be an injury.

Just like he has done in the group stage, Mo Salah will be looking to propel this team forward as this could be his last chance to win a silverware with his country and with help from others like Marmoush and Elneny, it looks doable but they also need to eliminate any form of complacency too.

Benin

Gernot Rohr and his boys will probably enter this match with minimal pressure on them after advancing to this stage through an unconventional route as one of the four best third-placed teams in a group that had Senegal and DR Congo but getting an upset would also be on their mind going into this encounter.

They failed to find the net in their 1-0 loss against DR Congo and also against Senegal despite Kalidou Koulibaly’s sending-off and we’re helped by the win in their second game, hence, they will need an almost perfect performance to achieve that against an opponent that doesn’t concede much goals.

To get that, they would need to be clinical in front of goal as we saw Egypt allow their opponents to have a number of shots on goal during the group stage even if they conceded just once, against Zimbabwe but kept clean sheet in the other games, especially against the rampaging South Africa.

Despite failing to score and inspire at the tournament so far, the likes of Steve Mounie, Junior Olaitan and Aiyegun Tosin will still be their surest outlet for goals and assist. Olaitan and Mounie were involved in five goals during AFCON qualifying, with the wide attacker contributing two assists, highlighting his creative threat.

Meanwhile, Sessi D’Almeida is an injury doubt for Benin, while Abdoul Rachid Moumini is suspended after accumulating yellow cards but the rest of the team and lineup should largely remain unchanged for this important clash for a team that narrowly missed out on the ticket to the World Cup.

Head To Head

Egypt have never lost to Benin (3 wins and one draw) with the two nations last facing off in 2010, also at an AFCON tournament. The first two were a World Cup qualifiers match (2004 and 2005) and then one friendly match in 2008.

Predicted Lineup

Egypt :El Shenawy; Hany, Ibrahim, Rabia, Hamdi; Attia, Fathy, Zizo; Salah, Marmoush, Trezeguet

Benin :Dandjinou; Ouorou, Verdon, Tijani, Roche; Imourane, Attidjikou; Tosin, Dodo, Olaitan; Mounie

Read Also: AFCON 2025: Eric Chelle Focused On Mozambique As Super Eagles Target Quarter-Final Spot

Verdict: Should be an easy win for Egypt if they can get their acts together and an early goal would help but they also run the risk of losing if they fail to remain compact, especially in the defence. (2-0).

Do you have story tips?

Kindly Email: keepup@bettitude.com

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube