How Egypt reached FIFA Arab Cup semifinals after thrashing Jordan in quarter-finals extra time
Egypt ended a 29-year wait to reach the Arab Cup semi-finals following a thrilling 3-1 victory over Jordan in the quarter-finals on Saturday afternoon.
The Pharaohs had qualified for the knockout rounds as group D winners ahead of Algeria, while Jordan finished second three points behind Morocco in group C.
Egypt had to enter the game without three of their key players in Ahmed Hegazi and Ayman Ashraf for injury while Akram Tawfik was suspended after receiving two yellow cards in the group-stages.
On the other hand, Mohamed Magdy Afsha made a return to the squad after recovering from injury as he started from the bench.
While it was expected to be an easy victory for Egypt, it was Jordan who totally dominated the first-half, starting from the ninth minute when Al-Mardi forced El-Shennawy into a double save.
Two minutes later, Al-Naimat opened the scoring for Jordan after Olwan took advantage of an error from Mahmoud El-Wensh before passing the ball to Al-Naimat, who found the back of the net with a stunning effort.
Egypt tried to respond through Mostafa Fathi; however, his shot went just wide, before Jordan were denied from doubling their lead through Olwan following a solid save from Mohamed El-Shennawy.
In the 27th minute, the Al Ahly keeper was the hero once again after he brilliantly stopped a long-range strike from Noor Al-Rawabdeh in one of the saves of the tournament.
Jordan kept piling up the pressure and Olwan once again fired a stunner; however, he was denied by the woodwork before the ball was cleared away by El-Wensh.
Egypt finally came back into the game as the Jordanese keeper stopped shots from Mostafa Fathi and Hussein Faisal, before the equaliser finally came in the final moment of the first-half.
Ahmed Sayed Zizo sent an inch-perfect cross which was met by Marwan Hamdi with a strong header, finishing the first-half to end in a 1-1 draw.
Egypt was much better in the second-half as Hussein Faisal strangely missed the ball in front of an empty net inside the six-yard box just a few seconds after the restart.
Jordan responded through Al-Naimat who went through on goal following an error from El-Wensh; however, his effort went just inches wide of El-Shennawy’s goal.
Queiroz decided to bring in Mohamed Sherif for Hussein Faisal in the 58th minute, before Afsha and Mohanad Lashin were subbed for the injured Hamdi Fathi and Mostafa Fathi in the 72nd minute.
With just a few minutes left on the final whistle, Ahmed Sayed Zizo was sent on a one-on-one situation by a perfect through ball from Amr El-Sulya, but the winger’s header went wide for the game to enter the extra time.
Before the start of the extra-time, Ahmed Refaat was brought on for Marwan Hamdi and just three minutes later, Egypt were awarded a penalty after Zizo was brought down; however, the VAR overturned the decision for a handball on Zizo before the foul.
Refaat proved to be a game-changer after Mohamed Sherif brilliantly dribbled past his marker before sending a low cross to Refaat, who easily tapped the ball into the net for Egypt to take the lead.
After taking the lead, Omar Kamal and Ahmed Sayed Zizo were brought off for defenders Marwan Dawod and Mohamed Abdelmonem at the extra-time half-time break.
The substitutions proved to be successful once again as Dawoud headed in Ahmed Refaat’s cross in the 119th minute, securing the victory for Egypt.
Egypt are now through to the semi-finals of the Arab Cup for the first time since 1992, when they were crowned champions; however, they will have a tough clash this year against Tunisia.
Group B winners Tunisia had to beat Oman 2-1 to secure their spot in the semis, where hosts Qatar will be up against either Algeria or Morocco.
The semi-finals will take place on Wednesday, December 15, with Egypt facing Tunisia at Stadium 974 in Doha.
Egypt XI: Mohamed El-Shennawy; Omar Kamal, Mahmoud Hamdy El-Wensh, Ahmed Yassien, Ahmed Fetouh; Amr El-Sulya, Hussein Faisal, Hamdi Fathi; Mostafa Fathi, Ahmed Sayed Zizo, Marwan Hamdi.
Jordan XI: Ihsan Haddad, Hadi Al-Hourani, Abdallah Naseeb, Mohammad Abu Hasheesh; Baha’ Abdel-Rahman, Ali Olwan, Noor Al-Rawabdeh, Mahmoud Al-Mardi, Mohammad Al-Dmeiri; Yazan Al-Naimat.
