Egypt vs Ivory Coast LIVE!
Egypt defeated Ivory Coast 3-2 to reach the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations at the Stade Adrar in Agadir, Morocco. Mohamed Salah netted the decisive goal for his country as the Pharaohs dumped the holders out of the competition at the last-eight stage. Omar Marmoush opened the scoring with a composed finish inside four minutes, and Ramy Rabia doubled the advantage just after the half-hour with a looping header.
Ahmed Fatouh put through his own net with five minutes to play before half time to give the Elephants hope, but that was quickly dashed in the second period, despite the Ivorians’ supposed resurgence. Salah was the man to restore the two-goal cushion, slotting home at the far pot on 52 minutes after a delicious pick-out from Emam Ashour.
Guela Doue made things interesting on 73 minutes forcing one over the line after a corner, but Egypt clung on to secure a return to the semi-finals. They will take on Senegal, with Nigeria facing Morocco.
Egypt vs Ivory Coast latest news
- GOAL! Doue sets up grandstand finish
- GOAL! Salah makes it three
- GOAL! Fatouh own goal halves deficit
- GOAL! Rabia doubles advantage
- GOAL! Marmoush opens scoring
Pharaohs dump holders out of AFCON 2025
21:12 , Oli GentWhat a game that was, and Egypt are through! They will face Senegal in the semi-finals.
FT: Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:55 , Oli GentThat's it, and the holders are out! The Pharaohs are through to the semi-finals where they will face Senegal.
Thanks for joining us on Standard Sport, be sure to come back very soon for even more LIVE AFCON action.
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:51 , Oli Gent90+2 mins: Marmoush is replaced by Mohamed.
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:51 , Oli Gent90 mins: Five added minutes.
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:49 , Oli Gent88 mins: Another double change for the Ivorians. Toure and Fofana are on for Diomande and Inao.
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:44 , Oli Gent85 mins: Time is ticking away, and it’s whittling down the Ivory Coast’s title defence...
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:40 , Oli Gent81 mins: Guessand is sacrificed, and here comes Vakoun Issouf Bayo.
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:38 , Oli Gent80 mins: Ashour is off, Trezeguet replaces him.
Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:37 , Oli Gent78 mins: It’s all about the defending champions now. Egypt are dropping deeper and deeper to soak up the pressure. Can they hold out?
Goal! Egypt 3-2 Ivory Coast
20:33 , Oli Gent73 mins: They are back in it, as Doue scores the Ivorians’ second. Sangare ghosts around the back to knock down the header, and the keeper makes a save before Doue forces it home.
Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:29 , Oli Gent71 mins: Time for a change. Krasso is coming on for Kessie.
Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:27 , Oli Gent69 mins: The Ivorians are throwing men forward, but that means they’re leaving themselves open to the Egypt counter. That will play right into Salah and Marmoush’s hands...
Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:24 , Oli Gent65 mins: Close! The Ivory Coast corner is dealt with by the Egypt defence, and it drops for Diomande who can’t bring it under his spell before Kessie strikes high and wide.
Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:22 , Oli Gent62 mins: Marmoush is down after a challenge from Inao. The Man City man is getting treatment.
Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:20 , Oli Gent60 mins: Close! Egypt are in again as Salah sets Hany off down the right. He has a go at goal, the right-back, but it’s straight at Fofana and hacked behind. The corner delivered by Salah is cleared.
Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:17 , Oli Gent57 mins: The Elephants are looking a lot more front-footed now, more out of desperation than anything else. Can they get back into this?
Goal! Egypt 3-1 Ivory Coast
20:12 , Oli Gent52 mins: It’s there, and Egypt regain their two-goal cushion. It’s Mohamed Salah who’s on target, but this is all about Rabia. He picks out a lovely swept pass into Ashour, who picks out Salah at the far post to knock home.
Egypt 2-1 Ivory Coast
20:09 , Oli Gent50 mins: Ivory Coast with more of the possession in the opening exchanges of this second half. Can they find that elusive equaliser?
Egypt 2-1 Ivory Coast
20:05 , Oli Gent48 mins: A big 45 minutes for both sides here. Who will come out on top?
Kick off!
20:05 , Oli Gent46 mins: We’re back underway.
HT: Egypt 2-1 Ivory Coast
19:47 , Oli GentThere’s the interval. Egypt are deservedly ahead, but the Elephants are growing in confidence after that deficit-halver.
What will the second period have in store?
Egypt 2-1 Ivory Coast
19:46 , Oli Gent45 mins: Two added minutes.
Egypt 2-1 Ivory Coast
19:43 , Oli Gent43 mins: Free kick, Ivory Coast. Kessie fells Marmoush tight to the left touchline and is complaining to the referee about it. He’s walking a tightrope to a booking here...
Goal! Egypt 2-1 Ivory Coast
19:40 , Oli Gent41 mins: The Elephants are back in it! Diomande’s wicked ball in takes the smallest of touches off Kossounou, and Fatouh is unlucky as he puts it through his own net.
Egypt 2-0 Ivory Coast
19:39 , Oli Gent39 mins: Free kick, Ivory Coast. Diomande is fouled by Ashour, and Kessie isn’t happy about it.
Egypt 2-0 Ivory Coast
19:35 , Oli Gent35 mins: In fairness, that goal has come against the run of play, but the Ivorians must be stronger in the aerial battles, especially with the physicality they boast. Sangare was beaten all ends up by Rabia at the corner.
Goal! Egypt 2-0 Ivory Coast
19:32 , Oli Gent32 mins: It’s two, and it’s Ramy Rabia, who nods home from the Salah corner! A towering leap and a floated header back from whence it came.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:30 , Oli Gent30 mins: An Ivory Coast free kick is floated in and Guessand makes contact, but his header is tame and straight into the gloves of Fofana.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:25 , Oli Gent25 mins: More sustained pressure from the Ivory Coast as Diallo and Doue combine down the right. A lovely shimmy from the right-back earns the Elephants a throw deep in Egypt territory.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:21 , Oli Gent22 mins: Close! Abdelmaguid makes contact on the Marmoush delivery, beating the onrushing Fofana to the ball, but he nods it over!
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:20 , Oli Gent21 mins: Free kick, Egypt. Clumsy challenge from Sangare, who clips the advancing Marmoush.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:18 , Oli Gent18 mins: Close! The Elephants with their first meaningful foray forward as Ibrahim slips and the Ivory Coast come forward through Kessie. It’s worked across the box to Diallo, but he can’t turn it goalwards.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:15 , Oli Gent15 mins: The Ivory Coast still looking a bit flat in this first quarter. They need to sharpen up if they want their title defence to continue.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:11 , Oli Gent11 mins: Chance for Egypt as Marmoush breaks clear once more amid some more defensive uncertainty in the Ivory Coast ranks, but Kossounou sweeps up.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:08 , Oli Gent8 mins: Corner, Ivory Coast. Diallo dances past Fatouh and looks to get the cross in towards Guessand, but it’s scrambled behind by Rabia. The resulting set piece is cleared well, however.
Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:06 , Oli Gent7 mins: A nightmare start for the Ivory Coast. How do they respond from such an early blow?
Goal! Egypt 1-0 Ivory Coast
19:04 , Oli Gent4 mins: And what a start for the Pharaohs! Marmoush opens the scoring, and it’s calamitous defending from the Elephants. They lose it in midfield, and Ashour finds Marmoush bursting in behind. He finishes with aplomb to slot past Fofana!
Egypt 0-0 Ivory Coast
19:03 , Oli Gent3 mins: Egypt are rejigged with their injury worries, and are starting cautiously to bed their new players into the side.
They are looking direct for Salah and Marmoush as much as possible, however.
Kick off!
19:00 , Oli Gent1 min: We’re underway.
Five minute warning
18:55 , Oli GentHere come the players, and it’s time for the anthems...
Ten minutes to kick off
18:50 , Oli GentWho’s winning this one?
Who will play Senegal in the last four?
Nigeria through!
18:40 , Oli GentThe Super Eagles are into the last four with victory over Algeria.
Follow live here!
AFCON: Everything you need to know
18:30 , Oli GentWe’re getting towards the business end of the tournament.
Here’s everything you need to know as we approach the semi-finals.
As for Ivory Coast...
18:20 , Oli GentThe Elephants are in a 4-3-3, with Amad Diallo and Yan Diomande flanking Evann Guessand. Their strength in depth is evident with the likes of Oumar Diakite, Wilfried Zaha and Vakoun Issouf Bayo on the bench, with all three prepared to replace the starting trio.
In the engine room, Nottingham Forest’s Ibrahim Sangare will be the sitter, breaking up play with former AC Milan man Franck Kessie, while 19-year-old Trabzonspor prospect Christ Inao Oulai completes the trio.
In defence, there is a serious amount of athleticism in the heart of the back four, with Odin Kossounou and Evan Ndicka as strong and as quick as anything.
Guela Doue and Ghislain Konan flank them, tasked with keeping the width as Amad and Diomande drift inside.
Let's analyse these teams, shall we?
18:10 , Oli GentFor Egypt, it looks like it’ll be a diamond formation from Hassan.
His two star men up top, Omar Marmoush and Mohamed Salah, with the creative outlet Emam Ashour tucked behind them.
The plan? Give it to the stars.
Ivory Coast lineup
18:05 , Oli GentIvory Coast XI: Fofana; Doue, Kossounou, Ndicka, Konan; Oulai, Sangare, Kessie; Diallo, Guessand, Diomande
Subs: Fofana, Diomande, Operi, Diakite, Zaha, Bayo, Kone, Krasso, Lafont, Zohouri, Toure, Boly, Gbamin, Seri, Agbadou
Egypt lineup
18:03 , Oli GentEgypt XI: El Shenawy; Hany, Ibrahim, Rabia, Fatouh; Attia, Abdelmaguid, Fathi; Ashour; Salah, Marmoush
Subs: Fathi, Shehata, Lasheen, Adel, Eid, Zizo, Saber, El Shenawy, Trezeguet, Faisal, Shobeir, Mohsen, Ismaeil, Sobhy, Mohamed
Meanwhile, in the FA Cup...
17:50 , Oli GentMacclesfield played Crystal Palace in the FA Cup earlier today.
It’s fair to say the holders were given a real fright...
Also tonight!
17:40 , Oli GentNigeria take on Algeria in today’s other AFCON quarter-final.
Match odds
17:30 , Oli GentEgypt to qualify: 5/4
Ivory Coast to qualify: 4/7
Odds via Betfair (subject to change)
Head to head
17:20 , Oli GentEgypt and Ivory Coast have plenty of history at AFCON, meeting at the round-of-16 stage in January 2022, where the former won on penalties after they could not be separated inside 120 minutes.
Egypt wins: 12
Ivory Coast wins: 7
Draws: 3
Standard Sport prediction
17:10 , Oli GentJust seven places separate these two nations in the current FIFA world rankings. That is more than enough evidence to suggest this is going to be a very close game.
This could be a contest where the two teams cancel each other out, so extra time and penalties would not be a surprise. Ultimately, we think Ivory Coast have better quality in attack to emerge victorious.
Ivory Coast to win, 1-0.
Ivory Coast team news
17:00 , Oli GentFor Ivory Coast, their one injury concern is central defender Odilon Kossounou after he picked up a knock late on against Burkina Faso.
Ousmane Diomande replaced the Atalanta star that night and is on standby to start if Kossounou cannot play, likely partnering Evan Ndicka.
The holders are spoilt for choice in attack, though Amad is effectively a guaranteed starter given his form at the tournament so far.
Egypt team news
16:50 , Oli GentSalah is expected to start for Egypt, but it remains to be seen if the Liverpool star will be part of a two-man attack with Manchester City’s Omar Marmoush or part of a front three.
Hossam Hassan has tinkered with his formation throughout the tournament, but his hand could be forced as Trezeguet and Mohamed Hamdi are both doubts after picking up knocks in the win over Benin.
How to watch
16:40 , Oli GentTV channel: Every match of the 2025 AFCON tournament will be broadcast live in the UK across Channel 4’s network.
This game will be shown on E4, with coverage starting at 6.30pm GMT.
Live stream: UK viewers will be able to stream the game live online via the Channel 4 app and website, plus the Channel 4 Sport YouTube channel.
Hello and welcome!
16:30 , Oli Gent... to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of Egypt vs Ivory Coast in the quarter-final of the Africa Cup of Nations.
This should be a cracking encounter. Stay tuned for all the updates, with kick off at 7pm GMT.
