Liverpool flavour as Salah’s Egypt battles Mane’s Senegal for AFCON title

Egypt’s forward Mohamed Salah reacts during the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) 2021 quarter-final football match between Egypt and Morocco at Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo in Yaounde on January 30, 2022. (Photo by Kenzo Tribouillard / AFP)

Two of Africa’s best strikers, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, will be on opposite sides tomorrow to decide the winner of the 33rd Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroun.   No doubt, this final, which holds at Olembe Stadium in Yaoundé, will have the distinctly Red flavour of English Premier League side, Liverpool.

Mohamed Salah, who was recently shortlisted by FIFA as one of the best three footballers in the globe, powered The Pharaohs of Egypt to the final on Thursday night, beating hosts, Cameroun, 3-1 on penalties. The victory set up a clash with Sadio Mane’s Teranga Lions of Senegal, who, on Wednesday, brushed aside Stallions of Burkina Faso with the same scoreline.

Tomorrow’s AFCON final in Cameroun is the first of two big clashes between the Liverpool teammates. They will also be involved for their countries in the Qatar 2022 World Cup playoff next month.   For Mane, whose team lost to another North African country, Algeria, in the final three years ago when Egypt hosted the 32nd edition of the tournament, said there is no hiding place for Mohamed Salah and ‘his gang.’

Mane stated that though he respects The Pharaohs, but they can’t prevent the Teranga Lions from winning the 33rd Africa Cup of Nations title.   Mane is of the opinion that “experience is a good asset” for the Teranga Lions.   “We had a very difficult time but with our experience, we kept calm until we recovered the whole group,” Mane said while responding to questions from journalists.   He continued: “We played a final last