Elneny at AFCON - our guide to Egypt's chances

For the fourth time in his career, Mohamed Elneny is heading to the Africa Cup of Nations, which kicks off on Saturday.

Having finished as a runner-up twice before, Mo will be hoping he can finally get his hands on the silverware this time around, and ahead of the competition starting this weekend, here is everything you need to know:

The key info

This Africa Cup of Nations will be the 34th edition of the biennial tournament. It was due to be held last summer in the Ivory Coast, but was switched to the northern hemisphere winter in 2022 to avoid a clash with the rainy season in West Africa.

The action begins on January 13 and will run until February 11. 24 teams are vying for the trophy, with the Ivory Coast playing host for the second time.

Egypt’s chances

The Pharaohs have won the tournament a record seven times, and having been runners-up in two of the last three stagings, they will be desperate to clinch an eighth title for Mohamed Salah who aims to finally lift some silverware on the international stage.

One of the greatest African players of all time, the Liverpool striker will captain Egypt, but he and Elneny are the only current Premier League players in the squad. Striker Trezeguet and defender Ahmed Hegazy did though represent Aston Villa and West Bromwich Albion respectively.

After replacing the defensively-minded Carlos Quieroz in the dugout, two-time Portuguese title winner Rui Vitoria has named the oldest squad at the finals, with an average age of 28.9 years and just three players aged under 25.

A change of approach has seen Egypt net 33 goals in their last 14 games, with Nantes’ Mostafa Mohamed and Omar Marmoush of Eintracht Frankfurt heading into the tournament in decent goalscoring form for their clubs this season and aiming to make an impression.

Other contenders

Given their exploits in Qatar just over a year ago, it comes as no surprise that Morocco have been enlisted as favourites. Ranked 13th in the world by FIFA, they will be hoping they can end a near-40-year wait for a title, having become the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final last year, beating Belgium, Spain and Portugal along the way. Walid Regragui is still in charge, and will rely on the talents of Youssef En-Nesyri, Hakim Ziyech and a rock-solid defence run by Achraf Hakimi.

Senegal are the defending champions after beating Elneny’s Egypt on penalties two years ago. Sadio Mane scored the winning spot-kick that day and is still the team’s talisman, highlighted by their disappointing display at the World Cup where they were swatted aside in the last 16 by England. They also have Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson in their ranks, plus former Blues Kalidou Koulibaly and Eduoard Mendy.

Nigeria also have a host of talent, especially Victor Osimhen who fired Napoli to the Serie A championship and was named the 2023 African Player of the Year. For a nation who have regularly produced world stars, remarkably they have only won the competition once in 30 years, and recently drew their opening World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

The last seven AFCONs have had seven different winners, but the hosts didn’t reach the final in any. That’s bad news for the Ivory Coast, and the omission of Wilfried Zaha from their squad means the goalscoring burden will fall on the out-of-form Nicolas Pepe and Sebastian Haller.

Cameroon and Ghana were also World Cup participants last year, and while the Indomitable Lions have been boosted by the return of Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana, the Black Stars are missing Thomas Partey and have scored just eight goals in 10 matches under Chris Hughton, despite fielding ​​West Ham United’s red hot Mohammed Kudus.

How the competition works

24 nations have qualified, split into six groups of four. The top two from each group will automatically reach the last 16, along with the four best third-placed teams.

Egypt have been placed in Group B alongside Ghana, Cape Verde and Mozambique, meaning barring any shocks it looks like a shootout between the Pharaohs and Black Stars for the top spot.

The knockout phase starts with the round of 16, with the winners of Group B facing a team that finished third in one of the others. Then follows the traditional pattern of a quarter-final, semi-final and final, which will be played on Sunday, February 11.

Mo’s role

Mo is the most experienced member of the squad with 95 caps to his name across 12 years of service to the national team. During that time he has represented them at four AFCONs, but twice tasted defeat in the final, despite scoring the opening goal in the 2017 showpiece against Cameroon.

After overcoming the knee injury that kept him out for the majority of last year, Mo has returned to the international fold and featured in all of Egypt’s last five matches.

Usually occupying the defensive midfield role he plays for Mikel Arteta’s team, he is likely to be partnered with another veteran in Hamdi Fathi if coach Vitoria opts for a more defensive side. However, if more firepower is needed Marwan Attia or Emam Ashour could also come into the side, with Mo pushed further forward to have more influence in a three-man midfield.

When he’ll be in action

Egypt start their quest to make it eight continental triumphs when they take on Mozambique on Sunday, January 14, in Abidjan which will host all three of their matches. Despite their four previous AFCON appearances, the Mambas - ranked 111th in the FIFA rankings - are yet to register a win, and that will be the target as they end a 13-year wait for a finals berth.

The second group game comes four days later when Egypt face Ghana - the biggest threat for the top spot. The Black Stars have lifted the trophy on four occasions but not since 1982, and were eliminated in the group stage two years ago after losing to debutants Comoros, who also recently beat them in World Cup qualifying.

Mo will then hope to be in action against Cape Verde as Egypt complete the group stage on Monday, January 22. After they reached the quarter-finals in their first appearance in 2013, the Islanders climbed as high as 27th in the world, but currently are in 73rd spot. They did however reach the knockout stages last time around before losing to eventual champions Senegal.

How to watch

Viewers in the UK can follow Mo and Egypt’s progress live on Sky Sports, with the Mozambique game kicking off at 5pm, and the other group matches starting at 8pm.

Supporters from other countries can find out which broadcaster is showing the action wherever they are in the world.

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