U20 AFCON: two places in the final up for grabs
U20 AFCON semi-finals today: Nigeria face South Africa, while Egypt take on Morocco.
Sport News Africa · Author profile ·
Listen to this story
Audio version in preparation · read aloud by your browser meanwhile
Nigeria, who knocked out defending champions Senegal, made a real statement in the quarter-finals. The most successful team in the competition's history (7 titles), the Nigerian side are chasing an 8th star at the U20 AFCON. First, though, they must get past South Africa in the semi-finals, and that will not be easy.
The South Africans have shown real quality at this U20 AFCON. They first finished top of Group A with 7 points, before knocking out DR Congo in the quarter-finals. Their aim is to reach the final at the very least, which would be their best performance in this tournament (in 1997). Since then, they have still managed a 3rd-place finish in 2019.
The North African derby
The day's other tie pits Morocco against Egypt, a fixture not seen in this tournament since 2005 (a 2-2 draw in the group stage). The young Pharaohs, on home soil, will want to win this U20 AFCON, which would be their 5th title. If they did, Egypt would become the 2nd most successful nation behind Nigeria, and behind Ghana (4). With victory tonight, the Egyptians would be back in the final for the first time since 2013, the year of their 4th title.
As for Morocco, they are chasing a 2nd U20 AFCON title. The first came in 1997, which is also the only time the Moroccans have reached the final. Besides, a win in this competition, on top of the U17 AFCON title a few weeks ago, would further prove that Morocco have an exceptional pool of young talent. Of note, all four semi-finalists have already secured qualification for the U20 World Cup, which will take place in Chile this year.