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Abou-Gabal: Egypt are back
Egypt goalkeeper Mohamed Abou Gabal celebrates saving Harold Desty Moukoudi of Cameroon penalty during the penalty shoot out during the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Afcon Finals Semifinal match between Cameroon and Egypt held at Olembe Stadium in Yaounde, Cameroon on 03 February 2022 ©Shaun Roy/BackpagePix
Friday Feb 04, 2022. 14:00
Egypt goalkeeper Mohamed Abou-Gabal says eliminating three big guns in the knockout stages to reach the AFCON 2021 final is testament that The Pharaohs are back.
The record seven-time AFCON champions on Thursday night eliminated tournament hosts Cameroon 3-1 on post-match penalties in the semifinals played in Yaoundé following a scoreless draw after extra-time to book a debut final meeting against Senegal on February 6.
Five-time champions Cameroon’s fall to Egypt came after The Pharaohs beat 1976 winners Morocco 2-1 in extra-time in the quarterfinals.
Prior to that, Egypt endured another long night and shoot-out episode in the last 16 where they dumped out two-time champions Cote d’Ivoire 5-4 on post-match penalties.
“We did our best during this game and we were determined to win in its regular time, but we managed to win on penalties,” Abou-Gabal said in a post-match interview.
“We succeeded in overcoming very tough opponents like Cote d’Ivoire, Morocco and Cameroon in the previous games. This shows that Egypt is back.”
Abou-Gabal was Egypt’s hero on Thursday evening when he made two saves in the shootouts.
Egypt now heads into Sunday’s final homing in on their first AFCON title since Angola 2010.
But this is Egypt’s second final appearance in five years after losing 2-1 to Cameroon at Gabon 2017.
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