Pharaohs to miss Salah in crunch Cape Verde tie

Egypt will have to make do without talisman Mohamed Salah in their must-win encounter against Cape Verde in their final Group B match at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, with the game set to take place at Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium on Monday.

Having already qualified for the Round of 16, Cape Verde go into their final Group stage match on the back of a 2-1 win against Ghana and also, a 3-0 victory over Mozambique respectively.

Egypt however, recorded back-to-back 2-2 draws against Mozambique and Ghana in the tournament.

With two points to their name, Egypt are in second spot in Group B, one point behind Ghana who occupy third on the table.

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In what was major news in the tournament recently, Mohamed Salah has been ruled out for two fixtures owing to a hamstring injury he suffered against the Black Stars.

Cape Verde, meanwhile, have reported no fresh injury concerns in the last couple of days.

Speaking ahead of the crunch tie, Cape Verde coach Bubista said “I am so proud of my players. They applied the instructions perfectly, what makes me even more proud is their behaviour on the pitch.

“When one loses the ball, another recovers it. I liked seeing this solidarity. My players wanted more even after the third goal, they still wanted to score. It’s this competitive spirit that I like.”