Salah inspires Egypt as holder is knocked out
Omar Marmoush netted the opener and Mohamed Salah scored the decisive goal as Egypt ended Cote D'ivoire's reign with a narrow 3-2 triumph in the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals.
Centre back Rami Rabia was the other scorer for the Pharaohs, who had little possession at Grande Stade Agadir but took their chances with clinical precision and held on grimly to book a semi-final meeting with Senegal next Thursday (AEDT).
An own goal from Ahmed Fatouh and a late effort by Guela Doue proved insufficient for the Cote d'Ivoire, winner of the tournament on home soil two years ago but now deposed as the African champion.
Egypt, which has won a record seven Africa Cup of Nations titles, wasted little time in taking the lead as Marmoush scored in the fourth minute after Hamdi Fathy pinched the ball from Franck Kessie in the midfield, allowing Emam Ashour to thread a pinpoint ball to the sprinting Marmoush.
He still needed to shrug off the attentions of defender Odilon Kossounou before slotting home.
But it quickly became clear the Elephants were going to dominate possession, showing much more physical strength on the ball but without setting up clear chances.
Egypt went 2-0 up in the 32nd minute when Rabia rose above the defenders to head his side further ahead from a corner.
Cote d'Ivoire, which had 70 per cent of possession in the first half, reduced the deficit eight minutes later when teenager Yann Diomande’s free-kick near the corner took a slight brush off Kossounou’s head and ricocheted off the knee of full back Fatouh and into the net.
The Elephants had come from 2-0 down to beat Gabon 3-2 earlier in the tournament but hopes of turning the scoreline around soon after the restart were stymied by a simply created, but superbly finished, goal for Salah seven minutes after the break.
Rabia was well inside his own half when he chipped the ball over the top of the Cote d'Ivoire defensive line, allowing Ashour to run on to it and hit an accurate pass with the outside of his right boot into the path of Salah to score.
A Cote d'Ivoire comeback was still on when Doue touched home at the end of a goalmouth scramble in the 73rd minute.
That set up a siege of the Pharaohs' goal in the final 15 minutes but they held out to advance to the final four.
