Record winners Egypt, led by Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, face South Africa in the first titanic battle of the tournament.
Who: Egypt vs South Africa
What: CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2025
Where: Adrar Stadium in Agadir, Morocco
When: Friday at 4pm (15:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on media Sport from 12:00 GMT in advance of our text commentary stream.
Record Africa Cup of Nations winners Egypt face South Africa on Friday in the first battle of the titans group matchup in the 2025 edition of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) showpiece.
Much of Egypt’s build-up has been overshadowed by the public fallout between their superstar forward Mohamed Salah and his club team, Liverpool, but they remain among the top tier favourites to lift another AFCON crown.
Bafana Bafana had been a rising force on the continent in the late 1990s and early 2000s but until recently had fallen away on the continental and global stage.
Expectations remain high, however, and an early statement could be laid by South Africa if they can beat their opponent from the north coast of the continent.
media Sport takes a closer look at the game:
No news appears to be good news if you are a Liverpool fan who hopes one of the most decorated and influential players of the club’s modern era stays at the Premier League champions.
Reds manager Arne Slot said the club have “moved on” from Salah’s outburst when he claimed he had been “thrown under the bus” for his side’s woeful start to their title defence.
Despite the quietening of chatter at Anfield, the overall picture remains that an offer from Saudi Arabia – who have made their interest in Salah known – is highly likely to come in the January transfer window.
The 33-year-old former Chelsea and Roma forward himself is fully focused on helping Egypt win AFCON 2025, according to his international coach Hossam Hassan.
Salah has twice been a Cup of Nations runner-up, in 2017 and 2021, but is yet to add an international honour to his long list of club trophies.
Salah was on the scoresheet with a late winner for Egypt in their opening match of the tournament against Zimbabwe.
Prince Dube upset the odds in the 20th minute despite early Egyptian dominance. Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush levelled for Egypt in the 64th minute before Salah slotted home the injury-time winner.
South Africa’s 2-1 victory against near neighbours Angola was the first time they opened an AFCON with a win for 21 years.
Group B has been regarded as the group of death, given Angola’s rise and Zimbabwe’s relative revival, so Lyle Foster’s winner from outside the box looks crucial for Bafana Bafana’s hopes of progress – especially considering the Angolans will be disappointed to have not taken at least a point from the game.
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