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Ghana's World Cup opponents Egypt confident of revival after AFCON qualifying defeat

By ghanasoccernet.com
World Cup Ghana's World Cup opponents Egypt confident of revival after AFCON qualifying defeat
JUN 13, 2017 LISTEN

Egypt manager Hector Cuper is confident Ghana's World Cup qualifying opponent will bounce back from their 1-0 defeat by Tunisia in their opening Nations Cup qualifying game.

An unimpressive Egypt side were condemned to defeat in their Group J opener, courtesy of a Yassine Khenissi goal early in the second half.

The Pharaohs are in the same qualifying group with Ghana for the 2018 World Cup and the defeat to Tunisia has sparked hopes the north African will slip up to give the Black Stars the advantage.

Despite the demoralizing defeat, the Argentinean manager sounded upbeat, saying that he is confident his players will make up for the early loss.

"We are still at an early stage in the qualifiers. I'm sure we'll bounce back," Cuper, who led Egypt to a second-place finish in the 2017 Cup of Nations, said in the post-match press conference.

"My substitutions were late because I wanted to keep Abdallah El-Said as long as possible on the pitch, he is the one he could make the difference.

"It's difficult to retain our good form in the Cup of Nations last January; the circumstances are totally different now.

"We were not totally out of sorts today, we were the better side in the second half despite conceding a a goal. That's not to say we do not have our own problems especially those related to possession."

Ex-Valencia boss Cuper moved to make substitutions only after the 73rdminute, with El-Said and Ramadan Sobhi both making way for Amr Gamal and Mostafa Fathi respectively.

Egypt's upcoming competitive game is with Uganda away from home in August; a crucial World Cup qualifier as the Pharaohs bid for their first appearance at the football's most prestigious showpiece since 1990.

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