Egypt booked their place in the AFCON last eight with a dramatic 3–1 extra-time victory over Benin at Adrar Stadium.
Despite losing left-back Mohamed Hamdy to a serious ACL injury and seeing a late lead slip away, the Pharaohs found their clinical edge in the added 30 minutes.
After a scoreless first half, Marwan Attia fired Egypt ahead in the 69th minute with a powerful long-range strike—his first career AFCON goal.
A misplaced pass from goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy in the 83rd minute allowed Benin’s Jodel Dossou to tap in a chaotic equalizer, forcing extra time.
Egypt reasserted dominance in the 97th minute when Yasser Ibrahim headed home from an Attia cross. Mohamed Salah then sealed the win in the second period of extra time, finishing a pass from Zizo.
This victory marked the first time Egypt has scored three or more goals in an AFCON match since their 2010 title-winning campaign. It also saw Mohamed Salah reach 10 career AFCON goals.
The Pharaohs now move on to the quarter-finals to face the winner of Côte d’Ivoire vs. Burkina Faso, though they must do so without Mohamed Hamdy and potentially other injured stars like Trezeguet.
