P46.Qxp Layout 1

46 Friday Sports Friday, June 28, 2019 Salah sends Egypt into Cup of Nations last 16 CAIRO: Mohamed Salah scored his first goal of Premier League joint top scorer again threat- the Africa Cup of Nations as hosts Egypt secured ened inside five minutes here when an intercep- a place in the last 16 on Wednesday with a 2-0 tion broke his way only for the Egyptian to skew win over the Democratic Republic of Congo. wide under pressure. After four days of small Ahmed Elmohamady prodded Egypt ahead on 25 crowds, another capacity 75,000 crowd turned minutes after a wicked Salah cross and the Liv- out to cheer on the hosts in the capital, but they erpool star slammed in a second shortly before were nearly silenced when Marcel Tisserand half-time to spark frenzied celebrations at a slammed against the bar at a corner. packed Cairo International Stadium. Record seven-time champions Egypt rode Salah takes over their luck at times as DR Congo twice struck the DR Congo came to Egypt as one of the most crossbar in the first half but the Group A leaders unpredictable qualifiers having finished third in held firm to join Nigeria as the first teams 2015 only to make a timid quarter-final exit two through to the knockout phase. Egypt overcame years ago, and they fell behind for the second the distraction of Amr Warda being banished straight game as Elmohamady forced home after from the squad earlier in the day over mounting the ball fell kindly to him following an aerial chal- sexual harassment allegations. The claims sur- lenge with Christian Luyindama. Having created faced earlier this week on social media plat- the opener with his vicious right-wing cross, forms. Multiple women posted screenshots and Salah then stung the palms of Ley Matampi with testimonies of Warda’s alleged lewd comments. a powerful 25-yard free-kick. “I think the team is strong and the squad is Egypt would be rescued by the woodwork CAIRO: Egypt’s forward Mohamed Salah (C) kicks the ball and scores a goal during the 2019 strong but we are not happy to lose a member once more though when a deep cross was nod- Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) football match between Egypt and DR Congo at the Cairo Interna- of our family,” said coach Javier Aguirre. “The ded back across goal by Bokadi Bope and tional Stadium. — AFP team focused more on our match and played the Jonathan Bolingi’s looping header bounced back 90 minutes in a serious manner. I don’t think the off the bar. With his side riding their luck, Salah Egyptian team will be affected by the absence rose to the occasion and settled Egyptian nerves ers. Mohamed El Shenawy produced an excel- a match. Unfortunately we lost so the feeling is of anyone.” Mexican Aguirre fielded the same two minutes before half-time with a typically lent sprawling second-half save to claw out a one of hurt, particularly for my players. They side that defeated Zimbabwe 1-0, with centre- brilliant finish. Jacques Maghoma header, but despite an im- gave a lot and fought hard but didn’t get the re- back Ahmed Hegazy sporting a mask after Played into space down the right by Mah- provement on a horror first outing, DR Congo sult,” said DR Congo coach Florent Ibenge, breaking his nose in the opening game of the moud ‘Trezeguet’ Hassan, Salah skipped inside now know they must beat Zimbabwe in their final whose side fell 2-0 to Uganda in their opening tournament. Tisserand and ripped a crisp low drive inside game in order to possibly advance as one of the match. “We’ve got one match left against Zim- Salah was guilty of missing a hatful of Matampi’s near post to cue a volcanic eruption four best third-place finishers. babwe and we can hope for third place. We’re chances in the curtain-raiser and this season’s from the masses of delirious Egyptian support- “The feelings are mixed when you play such going to fight until the end.” — AFP not to fail in our opening match”. Rather than slam a lack- Morocco’s coach luster Moroccan display, Renard hailed Namibia: “They were well organized and coached.” While both nations should make the last 16, winning the group would set up hopes to torment a fixture against one of the third-place qualifiers while coming second means taking on the Group E winners. Neymar wants Barcelona Ivory Coast again Namibia v South Africa return: Club’s vice-president Namibia coach Ricardo Mannetti played for his coun- CAIRO: Since transforming perennial underachievers the try when they were humiliated 4-1 by South Africa at the BARCELONA: Brazilian superstar Neymar wants to return to Barcelona Ivory Coast into African champions four years ago, Herve 1998 Cup of Nations in Burkina Faso “The best way to two years after quitting the club to join Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona’s Renard has tormented them as coach of Morocco. The banish those memories would be to beat Bafana Bafana vice-president said yesterday. “What is correct, at the current time, what 50-year-old Frenchman, whose matchday shirts are al- (The Boys). We have never won a Cup of Nations match I have read, what I have heard, which seems exact, is that Neymar wants ways white, ensured the 2017 title defense of the Ivorians and that is our priority,” he said. “My players were heart- to come back to Barcelona,” Jordi Cardoner told a press conference at the did not last beyond the first round as the fell 1-0 to the broken after holding Morocco for 89 minutes and then Camp Nou. Moroccans. losing to an own-goal.” South Africa were inept against But he stressed that Barcelona had made no contact so far with the Renard inflicted more misery on his former team in the Ivorians and this match could decide which country world’s most expensive footballer who joined the French champions for 2018 World Cup qualifying with a 2-0 triumph in Abidjan sneaks through as a third-place finisher and which makes 222 million euros ($252 million). For the moment the club acknowledged taking Morocco to Russia at the expense of the Ivory an early exit. England-born coach Stuart Baxter has Neymar’s interest in returning to Barcelona but said there was no recruit- Coast. Considered potential winners of the 2019 Africa warned his players not to underestimate Namibia be- ment effort on their part to resign him. “To say that Barca is working on Cup of Nations in Egypt, Morocco and the Ivory Coast cause “this match is like a cup final for them”. recruiting Neymar, that is something I cannot agree with,” Cardoner said. meet Friday in a Group D top-of-the-table showdown in “For the moment all that is happening — and not only with Neymar — Cairo. “This is a special game for me,” said Renard, the Mali v Tunisia is that a number of players would like to play for a great club like only coach to win the Cup of Nations with two countries, Tunisia coach and former France star Alain Giresse Barcelona. We will see what happens in timely fashion.” “We are currently Zambia and the Ivory Coast. Here, AFP Sport previews knows what to expect from Mali as he coached them working on the phase of deciding which players we will not be keeping on the Group D doubleheader with the Ivory Coast-Mo- twice at the Cup of Nations with mixed results. Under next season,” said Cardoner. rocco clash followed by Namibia against South Africa, him, the Malians came third at the 2012 Cup of Nations “We are recruiting no-one at the moment, especially not this player while Group E leaders Mali face Tunisia in Suez. in Gabon but made a first round exit in the same country (Neymar) with whom we have had no contact.” However, media reports two years ago without winning a match. Now Giresse indicated that intermediaries between PSG and Barca had hammered out Ivory Coast v Morocco hopes to bring the Malian Eagles down to earth after they the terms of the deal which would free the Brazilian star to return to Both countries launched their campaigns with solitary- achieved the biggest win of the 12 first series matches in Barcelona this summer. goal victories in sweltering mid-afternoon Cairo heat, but Egypt, a 4-1 hammering of debutants Mauritania. The According to other Spanish media reports this week, Neymar has of- the Ivorians will have been the happier side. While they Mali scorers included burly Moussa Marega, who fered to take a pay cut of 12 million euros a year to return to the club and outmuscled South Africa and should have won by more notched six goals for Porto in the Champions League last Barca have reached a ‘verbal agreement’ to take him back. The 27-year- than a Jonathan Kodjia strike, Morocco laboured to a win season, the equal third best tally. Tunisia were the only old spent four years at Camp Nou, winning the Champions League in 2015 that came via a late Itamunua Keimuine own-goal. one of the six top group seeds not to collect maximum and two La Liga titles in a potent attacking trio alongside Lionel Messi Ivory Coast coach Ibrahim Kamara said “the result points and midfielder Ferjani Sassi blamed “an inability to and Luis Suarez. — AFP was more important than the performance.

Load more