Senegal v Egypt predictions: Fresh Lions of Teranga can claim first Afcon title

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Senegal v Egypt in the Africa Cup of Nations final on Sunday.

Where to watch

BBC Three and Sky Sports Football, Main Event & Premier League, 7pm Sunday

Best bet

Draw-Senegal double result
1pt 4-1 Betfair, Betfred, Paddy Power

Team news

Senegal
Coach Aliou Cisse may stick with the same 11 who started the semi-final win over Burkina Faso so Watford's Ismaila Sarr is likely to be used as an impact substitute.

Egypt
Carlos Queiroz, banned from the touchline after his red card in the semi-final, is likely to be missing experienced defender Ahmed Hegazi. Midfielder Akram Tawfik suffered a tournament-ending injury early in the first group game against Nigeria.

Match preview

Egypt have won the Africa Cup of Nations on a record seven occasions while Senegal are still waiting for their first title but the history books are expected to go out of the window in Sunday's final in Yaounde.

Senegal, 1-2 to lift the trophy, made a low-key start to their campaign, beating Zimbabwe 1-0 thanks to a 97th-minute Sadio Mane penalty before goalless draws against Guinea and Malawi.

The Lions of Teranga have breezed through the knockout stages, however, seeing off nine-man Cape Verde 2-0 and defeating Equatorial Guinea and Burkina Faso by 3-1 scorelines in the last eight and semi-finals.

Egypt, who racked up a hat-trick of Afcon titles between 2006 and 2010, have had to work much harder to reach the final despite having the continent's biggest star Mohamed Salah leading their attack.

The Pharaohs have scored just four goals in 630 minutes of tournament football, coming through penalty shootouts after goalless draws with Ivory Coast in the last 16 and hosts Cameroon in Thursday's semi-final.

Egypt, whose coach Carlos Queiroz will serve a touchline ban for the final after being sent off against Cameroon, needed extra-time to see off Morocco in the last eight and bookmakers expect fatigue to hamper their chances against Senegal.

A low-scoring contest is anticipated and Liverpool stars Mane and Salah have managed only 13 shots on target in their 12 combined appearances.

Senegal's nine goals have been scored in the 97th, 63rd, 92nd, 28th, 68th, 79th, 70th, 76th and 87th minutes and they have a clear edge in terms of freshness so the draw-Senegal double result is an appealing bet.

Key stat

Eight of Senegal's nine goals at the tournament have come in the 63rd minute or later.

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