Egypt coach: Facing Morocco is an early final in U-20 AFCON

Photo: Egyptian Football Association

Osama Nabih, the head coach of Egypt’s U-20 national team, stressed the importance of the clash against Morocco in the semifinal of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations, describing it as “an Arab-African derby and an early final,” due to the strength and development of the Moroccan team in recent years.

Nabih said, as quoted by Egyptian Football Association, during the pre-match press conference:

"Our match with the brotherly Moroccan team is an Arab-African derby and an early final because we are facing a strong and organized opponent that has proven its presence continentally and globally over the past years. We look forward to presenting a match worthy of our country’s name. We will defend strongly and with determination for our legitimate dreams and will fight to continue the journey toward the African dream."

For his part, Ahmed Khaled “Kabaka,” the captain of Egypt’s U-20 team, expressed the squad’s commitment to the continental dream, confirming that the players have vowed to fight to reach the final.

Kabaka said, according to the Egyptian Football Association:

"We all dream of reaching the final and playing at the dazzling Cairo Stadium and making the fans happy. We did that against South Africa and succeeded in overcoming the difficult stages. Only one step remains to get closer to the dream final, and we will not give up on our dream. We will fight for it and have pledged to overcome Morocco and fight for the great dream."

The match will kick off at 6 PM GMT (9 PM Cairo local time) on Thursday at the Air Defense Stadium.