Mohamed Salah struck deep into extra time to send Egypt into the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations with a dramatic 3-1 victory over Benin on Monday, before Victor Osimhen’s brace helped Nigeria cruise into the last eight with a dominant win over Mozambique.
Egypt captain Salah scored in the 124th minute to finally put the tie beyond doubt after a tense last-16 showdown in Agadir against spirited underdogs Benin.
The Pharaohs, record seven-time AFCON champions, have not lifted the trophy since 2010, and Liverpool star Salah is still chasing his first winner’s medal at the tournament.
Marwan Attia opened the scoring in the 69th minute, smashing a precise finish into the roof of the net from just outside the area after being teed up by Mohamed Hany.
Despite sitting 57 places below Egypt in the FIFA rankings, Benin refused to fold and forced extra time when Jodel Dossou poked home an equaliser in the 83rd minute. Goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy had initially saved well to push away Mohamed Tijani’s cross, but Dossou reacted quickest.
With memories of their last-16 exit on penalties to DR Congo in 2024 looming, Egypt regained the lead seven minutes into extra time when Yasser Ibrahim headed in. Salah then sealed the win on the counterattack in the dying seconds, netting his third goal of the tournament.
Egypt remain in Agadir and will face either defending champions Ivory Coast or Burkina Faso in Saturday’s quarter-final.
“Before the match, I said there are no easy opponents, and Benin proved that,” said Egypt coach Hossam Hassan. “Egypt are a great team and I want to make our people proud.”
Super Eagles dominate
Nigeria delivered a commanding performance as Osimhen scored twice and Ademola Lookman orchestrated a convincing 4-0 win over Mozambique in wet conditions in Fes.
Lookman opened the scoring in the 20th minute, finishing from Akor Adams’ assist. Osimhen, initially without his protective mask, put it back on before heading in Nigeria’s second five minutes later following a Lookman cross that Adams flicked on.
The Galatasaray striker struck again shortly after the break from another Lookman delivery, making it three goals in as many matches after failing to score in his previous seven AFCON appearances.
Lookman completed a standout display by setting up Adams once more, with the Sevilla forward blasting in Nigeria’s fourth with 15 minutes remaining. The victory marked Nigeria’s biggest AFCON knockout win since Egypt’s 4-0 semi-final rout of Algeria in 2010.
“I’m very happy with the performance,” said man-of-the-match Lookman. “We scored four goals and there’s a lot to be pleased about. Hopefully we can keep it going.”
Mozambique exit the tournament but can reflect positively after reaching the knockout stage for the first time in their history.
Nigeria, eager to make amends for missing out on World Cup qualification, advance to a quarter-final in Marrakesh on Saturday against either Algeria or DR Congo. The two sides meet in Rabat on Tuesday, with a Congolese victory offering Nigeria a chance to avenge their penalty shootout defeat to DR Congo in a World Cup playoff last November.
The remaining last-16 fixtures conclude on Tuesday, with Algeria facing DR Congo before Ivory Coast take on regional rivals Burkina Faso in Marrakesh.