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Mohamed Salah and his Egypt teammates are through to the quarterfinals of this year's Africa Cup of Nations after beating Benin 3-1 in extra time in Morocco on Monday
Mohamed Salah's dream of winning the Africa Cup of Nations is still alive after Egypt defeated Benin in extra time on Monday.
It was a tricky contest for Egypt, with two crucial players being forced out of the game through injury. Mohamed Hamdy appeared to suffer a serious knee injury during the first half before former Aston Villa winger Trezeguet limped toward the treatment room.
The Egyptians opened the scoring in Agadir, Morocco, thanks to Marwan Attia's strike from the edge of the box. Liverpool star Salah, whose agent posted an explosive message on Sunday, played an important role during the build-up to the goal.
READ MORE: Jurgen Klopp already explained why he rejected Man Utd as job becomes available againREAD MORE: Jamie Carragher immediately justified in Ruben Amorim criticism as Man Utd fires head coachEgypt made the breakthrough in the 69th minute. Salah combined cleverly with Mohamed Hany down the right flank before the defender produced a dangerous ball across the box. The ball eventually came to Attia, who found the back of the net.
For a while, it seemed as if that would be enough for Egypt to win the game. But Benin continued to push for an equalizer and found it in the 83rd minute, with Jodel Dossou making it 1-1.
An additional 30 minutes were required to separate the teams. The Egyptians restored their lead in the 97th minute through Yasser Ibrahim's brilliant header, and they were able to hold on for the victory despite pressure from Benin.
Salah was even on hand to make sure of the win by scoring in the 124th minute.
The Liverpool star is dreaming of winning the AFCON after years of heartbreak.
Egypt has won the AFCON a record seven times, lifting the trophy in 1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, and 2010.
But all those victories came before Salah made his international debut in 2011.
The Egyptians failed to qualify for the AFCON in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Salah helped them reach the final in 2017, but they lost 2-1 to Cameroon in Gabon.
Salah and his teammates were knocked out of the AFCON in the round of 16 in 2019 and 2023 (held in 2024), but they did reach the final again in 2021 (held in 2022). They were beaten on penalties by Senegal in Cameroon in the latter final.
Egypt will now face the winner of the Ivory Coast's game with Burkina Faso, which takes place in Marrakesh on Tuesday.
That quarterfinal tie will take place at Agadir on January 10.
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