Egypt 2025: Flying Eagles Aim For Bronze Against Young Pharaohs

Egypt 2025: Flying Eagles Aim For Bronze Against Young Pharaohs

Ibrahim Lateef

Seven-time champions Nigeria and four-time champions Egypt will battle for the bronze medals when they face off in the third-place match of the ongoing Africa U20 Cup of Nations finals in Cairo on Sunday, reports BSNSports.com.ng.

Both teams were expected to advance from their semi-final clashes, but the results did not go as anticipated, leading them to compete in the losers' final at the 30 June Air Defence Stadium in downtown Cairo.

In the other semi-final, Morocco and South Africa will face each other in a rematch of the 1997 final, which the Atlas Cubs won 1-0 in Meknes.

This marks the fifth time Nigeria, champions in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2005, 2011, and 2015, will compete for the bronze medal. For Egypt, it will be the fourth occasion.

Both teams have previously won the bronze medal three times. Interestingly, Nigeria and Egypt also met in the 2005 final in Cotonou, where the Flying Eagles emerged victorious, winning 2-0, with both goals scored by Isaac Promise (of blessed memory).

As hosts in 1995, after losing their semi-final match to Cameroon in Kaduna, the Flying Eagles defeated Mali 1-0 in Lagos to clinch the bronze medal.

In 2009, in Rwanda, a team led by Haruna Lukman triumphed over South Africa’s Amajita 2-1 to secure third place.

In 2013, Nigeria finished third in Algeria after defeating Mali 2-1, having lost to Egypt 0-2 in the semi-final clash at the Stade Omar Oucief in Aïn Témounchent.

Six years ago, after a penalty shootout loss to Mali in the semi-finals, the Flying Eagles suffered another penalty shootout defeat to South Africa in the third-place match. Egypt's first African U20 title came in 1981 when they defeated Cameroon 3-1 on aggregate in a home-and-away format.

Both teams then represented Africa at the FIFA World Youth Championship (now FIFA U20 World Cup), having beaten Nigeria, which lost to Cameroon 4-2 on aggregate in the penultimate round.

The Young Pharaohs claimed their second title at the inaugural tournament-format finals in 1991, which they hosted, winning against six other countries.

Their third title was achieved in Burkina Faso twelve years later when they beat Côte d’Ivoire 4-3 after extra time at the Stade 4 August in Ouagadougou.

Ten years after that, they won their fourth title at the Stade Ahmed Zabana in Oran, defeating Ghana (the 1999 world champions) after a penalty shootout to settle a 1-1 draw in regulation and extra time.

Nigeria made its first appearance in the Africa U20 Cup of Nations in 1979, led by Sylvanus Okpala, but they fell short, losing to Guinea 1-2 on aggregate (0-1 in Conakry and 1-1 in Lagos) and failed to qualify for the following global finals in Japan.

The Young Pharaohs, who lost narrowly to Morocco in their semi-final on Thursday, have won the third-place match three times previously.

They defeated Ethiopia on two occasions: 3-0 in Mauritius in 1993 and 2-0 when Ethiopia hosted the tournament eight years later.

Their third victory in this match came in South Africa in 2011 when they beat Mali’s Aiglons. Two years ago, Nigeria and Egypt faced each other in a group stage match, with the Flying Eagles winning thanks to a powerful first-half header from Solomon Agbalaka.

Head Coach Aliyu Zubairu may make some changes to the squad for Sunday’s match, expressing his disappointment with the team's performance following Thursday’s defeat to Amajita.

 Injured first-choice goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt is still undergoing observation and will need a second assessment during Saturday night’s official training to determine his fitness for the match.

Captain Daniel Bameyi, Odinaka Okoro, Adamu Maigari, and Emmanuel Chukwu are likely candidates for the defence. Israel Ayuma has had an impressive tournament and is expected to start in midfield, alongside any two among Sulyman Alabi, Simon Cletus, Divine Oliseh, and Auwal Ibrahim.

The forward line will consist of Clinton Jephta, Kparobo Arierhi, Tahir Maigana, Bidemi Amole, Precious Benjamin, and Mendos Rickson, all available for selection.