Enlarge imageBy Brian Homewood
CAIRO (Reuters) - Host nation Egypt will attempt to win a record fifth African Nations Cup title when their team of home-based players face Ivory Coast’s impressive array of European exports in Friday’s final.
The Egyptians, who on paper possess only an average team, have been swept to the final on a wave of patriotic fervour after overcoming initial scepticism among their own public.
Ivory Coast, meanwhile, have got steadily better as the tournament has worn on, eliminating any doubts about their World Cup credentials as they prepare for their first finals appearance in Germany in June.
Almost uniquely in a tournament where most players ply their trade with foreign clubs, 19 of Egypt’s 23-man squad are based locally, and the most prominent of the four exports will be missing from the final.
Advertisement starts
Advertisement ends
Tottenham Hotspur striker Mido, who has scored only one goal in the tournament, was kicked out of the squad on Wednesday for his tempestuous reaction to being substituted in the 2-1 semi-final win over Senegal.
Mido, who has also been banned from the team for six months, was involved in a furious row with coach Hassan Shehata as he left the field in the 78th minute.
Shehata, who took part in three Nations Cup tournaments as a player, was proved right as Mido’s replacement, Amr Zaki, headed the winner three minutes later.
RECOGNISED FORWARDS
Zaki, who plays for ENPPI, could be rewarded with a place in Friday’s starting line-up.
The other recognised forwards still in the squad are Al Ahli’s Emab Moteab and 39-year-old Hossam Hassan of Al Masry, one of three survivors in the squad from Egypt’s last title in Burkina Faso in 1998.
In contrast, Ivory Coast’s attack will be led by one of the world’s most expensive and high-profile players, Chelsea striker Didier Drogba.
Unlike Mido, Drogba, who emigrated to France as a five-year-old, has been an inspiration for his side, scoring three of their six goals.
Ivory Coast’s French coach Henri Michel, with three Nations Cup tournaments under his belt already, can also call upon a talented defence including Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Eboue from Arsenal.
Michel has already fared better than in 2002, when he was sacked by Tunisia following a poor showing just months before he was due to lead them at the World Cup.
The two sides will be meeting for the second time in the tournament, Egypt having won 3-1 when they met in their final group game.
However, the Ivory Coast on that occasion fielded a second-string side as they had already qualified for the quarter-finals.
MILITARY CAMP
Egypt’s assistant coach Shawki Gharib said the prospect of a move abroad could inspire his players on Friday.
"Every player will want to prove himself, it’s a chance for them to win a better contract," he said.
Gharib, whose country’s hosting of the event has often been chaotic, added: "We hope to represent Egyptian football and African football as well as possible."
Egypt won the first two Nations Cups in 1957 and 1959 and also lifted the trophy on the last occasion they hosted the event in 1986.
Ivory Coast, meanwhile, won the tournament for the only time in 1992 when they beat Ghana on penalties in the final.
After that, they fell into a rut, the low point coming when their players were flown to a military camp, frog marched and given lectures in patriotism after a first-round exit in 2000.
They failed to qualify in 2004 but have quickly turned their game around to become one of the continent’s leading sides and provided an example of unity to their strife-torn country.
