Egypt Confident Ahead of AFCON Kick Off

The Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) tournament is due to kick off tomorrow, with hosts Egypt set to take on Zimbabwe in the opening match for Group A.

Ahead of the opener the Egypt side has expressed confidence in their chances of victory. The team has won three of the four previous tournaments held in Egypt. Their side boasts international superstar Mohamed Salah, who was recently awarded the Golden Boot for his performance in the English Premier League last season. Salah’s 22 goals saw him share the title with Senegal’s Sadio Mane and Gabon’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Fellow Group A draws the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda are due to play Saturday.

The 2019 tournament is the first time 24 teams will participate, having been expanded to accommodate more sides.

Earlier this week the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) stated that it will be adopting a FIFA rule to permit too cooling water breaks during games as a result of the high temperatures. These are expected at the 30 and 75-minute mark and will last for 3 minutes.