Mohamed Salah's late goal saved Egypt and gave them a 2-1 win over Zimbabwe in their first match of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON). The Pharaohs came back from behind to claim the victory.
FRANCK FIFE / AFP
For the first 19 minutes, Egypt controlled the game, with Salah leading the attack.
He set up two crosses towards the far post. On the first, Trézéguet's header was saved by Zimbabwe's goalkeeper Washington Arubi after hitting the crossbar. Five minutes later, Salah's second cross found Emam Ashour unmarked, but his volley missed the target.
Zimbabwe made a rare push forward and scored through Prince Dube.
He controlled a ball from Emmanuel Jalai and scored past Ahmed El Shenawy. Egypt responded strongly but failed to find the net. Omar Marmoush fired a long-range shot that Arubi saved, and Salah missed a chance from outside the box as half-time approached.
In the second half, Egypt's dominance led to an equalizer.
A long ball found Marmoush on the left wing, and he scored with a powerful strike into the net. Despite this, Zimbabwe's defense still offered some resistance.
Substitute Zizo missed a key chance when he headed a cross from Mohamed Hamdy well over the bar.
Salah and Marmoush had some poor chances but seemed to have ended Egypt's hopes of a winning start. However, Salah stepped up in stoppage time and scored from 10 yards out, securing the win for Egypt and denying Zimbabwe a historic point.