Preview: Egypt vs Angola - prediction, team news, lineups

Egypt will hope to navigate a path to win a record-extending eighth Africa Cup of Nations crown when they start their qualifying journey against Angola on Friday, September 25.

Angola are searching for a third successive appearance at AFCON, in the hopes that they can go further than the group stage as they did in 2025.

Match preview

The Pharaohs finished last year's Africa Cup of Nations in fourth place, after losing to runners-up Senegal in the semi-final, and then falling on penalties to Nigeria in the third-placed playoff.

Hossam Hassan's men then enjoyed relative success at the 2026 World Cup, making it out of their group as runners-up to Belgium, although they were level on points with the Red Devils.

Egypt put in a strong performance against Argentina in the Round-of-16 clash, taking a 2-0 lead in a game that was filled with controversy.

In the end, the North African side lost 3-2 and had to return home, but they did so with their heads held high.

The road to the 2027 AFCON starts now, and with the form they have been in, the home side will be difficult to beat at the Cairo International Stadium.

The Egyptians should be confident here, especially since they are unbeaten against Angola across the previous head-to-heads on record.

Angola did not qualify for the World Cup in North America, but they generally have a good record of being present at AFCON.

After making their debut in 1996, the Sable Antelopes have made nine appearances at the continental showpiece, but they need a positive result in Egypt to set them up for a successful qualifying campaign once more.

Aliou Cisse's charges are unbeaten in their last four matches, winning one and drawing three, but they have had a tough time against Egypt in the past.

Of the eight head-to-heads, Angola managed to hold the hosts to four stalemates, including in last year's AFCON group stage.

The Sable Antelopes are capable of snatching a point in Cairo, which will hold them in good stead when they return home to face Malawi in their second group game next week.

Egypt form (all competitions):

DWDWL

Angola form (all competitions):

LDDDW

Team News

Hassan selected 24 players for these AFCON qualifiers; 22 of them were part of the World Cup squad.

Mohamed Salah, Omar Marmoush and Mohamed Abdelmonem headline the selections, while Abdelaziz El-Balouty returns to the goalkeepers' union.

Mohamed El-Shenawy, Yasser Ibrahim, and Mahmoud Trezeguet are notable absentees, with the latter two out through injury.

Marwan Attia is in the squad, but he will not be available for this match, as he is serving a two-game suspension from last year's AFCON, of which he has only served one so far.

The visitors named a 28-man squad for their upcoming qualifiers, and there are no serious concerns for Cisse ahead of this match.

Neblu is expected to start in goal, with David Carmo and Kialonda Gaspar likely to feature in front of him.

Zito Luvumbo, Mabululu and Depu should form the three-pronged attack responsible for breaching the hosts' back line.

Egypt possible starting lineup:

Shobeir; Hany, Rabia, Abdelmonem, Fattouh; Lasheen, Saber; Ashour, Salah, Ziko; Marmoush

Angola possible starting lineup:

Neblu; Bondo, Gaspar, Carmo, Fernando; Keliano, Mukendi, Milson; Luvumbo, Depu, Mabululu

We say: Egypt 1-1 Angola

Egypt's recent results have shown that they can be vulnerable at times, since they have drawn three of their last five matches within 90 minutes.

The visitors will also take heart from the fact that their two most recent meetings with the Pharaohs finished deadlocked, making it three of the last five ending in a draw.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.