Egypt is through to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) after beating hosts Cameroon 3-1 on penalties at the end of a goalless 120 minutes in Yaounde on Thursday.
Goalkeeper Mohamed Abou Gabal was the hero for the Egyptians, saving from both Harold Moukoudi and James Lea-Siliki in the shoot-out at the Olembe Stadium before Clinton Njie blazed wide with Cameroon’s last chance to keep their dream alive.
Mohamed Salah, usually the fifth penalty-taker for his country, was not needed as Egypt advanced to a final showdown against Senegal at the Olembe Stadium on Sunday.
That will see Salah come up against his Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane, with the Pharaohs chasing a record-extending eighth African crown while Senegal continues their search for their first-ever title.
Cameroon, meanwhile, sees their hopes of AFCON glory on home soil ended in cruel fashion, and they must still get through a third-place playoff against Burkina Faso this weekend.
Just 10 days had passed since the disaster at the stadium, when eight people were killed and 38 injured prior to Cameroon’s last-16 win against the Comoros.
The Confederation of African Football had temporarily shut the venue pending an investigation into the events, stripping it of a quarter-final before giving it the green light to reopen here.
Olembe is a spectacular stadium from the outside and from within, but there was still an uneasy feeling at normal service resuming so soon after the disaster.
Many fans were clearly put off, with just 24,371 fans attending in the 60,000-seat venue – many more could have been present even with COVID-19 restrictions limiting crowds to 80% of capacity for Cameroon games.
The lack of fans was a shame in what is a football-mad country, and Cameroon and Egypt are the two most successful sides in Cup of Nations history – the Indomitable Lions’ tally of five titles is bettered only by the Pharaohs.