Egypt and Morocco meet in Ismailia on Friday with a place at the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations Under-20 finals on the line. Only the top two teams in the North African Football Union (UNAF) tournament will qualify.
Egypt lead the five-team competition after winning both of their matches. Wael Riad’s side have scored four goals and conceded one, while Ludovic Batelli’s Morocco are second on four points.
Algeria also have four points, but have played one match more than Morocco and have an inferior goal difference. Algeria’s difference is 0, compared with +2 for Morocco. Tunisia have two points and Libya have none.
The match will be played at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium in Ismailia. Cairo Mubasher and Al Nahar have reported a 20:00 kick-off in Cairo, which is 17:00 GMT and 18:00 in Brazzaville. The time has been corroborated by the Egyptian press but is still awaiting confirmation from the organiser.
Tunisia and Libya will contest the other match on the fourth matchday.
What is at stake?
The tournament consists of a single league table, with each team playing once and the top two advancing.
Victory for Egypt would take them to nine points and guarantee their place in the final tournament. Morocco and Algeria can reach only seven points, while Libya could finish on six and Tunisia on five.
A Morocco win would also be enough for Batelli’s team to qualify. Reaching seven points would mean they could be overtaken or caught by only one side, because Egypt and Algeria face each other on the final matchday.
A draw would leave the qualification picture unresolved until 6 October.
Riad told his players to focus immediately on Morocco after their victory against Tunisia. In comments reported by Al-Ahram, the Egypt coach underlined the importance of the fixture as his side seek to remain top of the competition and move closer to qualification.
Morocco’s decisive spell against Algeria
Morocco opened their campaign with a goalless draw against Tunisia on 27 September.
They then defeated Algeria 3-1 on Wednesday, with all four goals coming after half-time. Morocco scored three times between the 53rd and 64th minutes before Algeria pulled one back in the 84th minute.
The result kept Morocco firmly in contention, but a win against Egypt would allow them to secure qualification without having to wait for the final round.
The tournament concludes on Tuesday, 6 October, when Algeria play Egypt and Libya face Morocco.
