Egypt vs Morocco: Kickoff time, venue, team news, predictions - AFCON 2021 Round-of-16 Preview

Two North African giants Egypt and Morocco trade tackles in the third quarterfinal fixture of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with a semifinal ticket on the line. 

Both sides have already improved on a Round-of-16 finish at the 2019 edition by getting to the quarterfinals and they will be looking to go another step further to the last 4 this time around.

The Pharaohs of Egypt eliminated one of the tournament favourites, Ivory Coast on penalties, to book their place here.

Despite just scoring two goals so far in this competition, they have consistently improved on their performance since their opening 1-0 loss to Nigeria.

On the other hand, the Atlas Lions of Morocco have looked strong in this competition so far with an identifiable style of play and the results to show.

Carlos Queiroz's Egyptian side snapped a three-match losing streak with a 1-0 victory over Guinea-Bissau on Matchday 2 of the AFCON finals.

Since then, the seven-time African champions have won their next two games despite a paucity of goals from an attack that boasts the mercurial Mohamed Salah.

Only on two occasions in their last 10 matches have the Egyptians scored more than one goal in a match. 

Meanwhile, Vahid Halilhodzic's Morocco have lost only once in their last five matches, the same number of losses in their last 10 games and their last 32 games.

Eight wins, one draw, one loss, 24 goals scored, five goals conceded and seven clean sheets in the last 10 games tell the story of a Moroccan side in better form.

In head-to-head matches at the AFCON finals, Morocco have the upper hand with three wins, two defeats, and one draw in six matches against Egypt. 

The Egypt Vs. Morocco fixture is scheduled to be held on Sunday, January 30 at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaounde by 4 pm Nigerian time.

Egypt are without first-choice goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy with the 33-year-old going off with a hamstring injury in the Round-of-16. 

Zamalek goalkeeper Mohamed Abou-Gabal Gabaski showed he is a capable replacement following his penalty shootout heroics against the Ivorians. 

Queiroz is still without left-back Akram Tawfiq while defensive midfielder Hamdi Fathi is also a doubt for the clash with the Atlas Lions.

Morocco have an all-clear on all fronts with no suspensions, injuries, or positive coronavirus cases to worry about.

Achraf Hakimi has been deadly on free-kick duty at AFCON 2021 with the Paris Saint-Germain wing-back expected to be on hand to wreak havoc against the Egyptian backline.

Egypt Possible Starting XI: Mohamed Abou-Gabal Gabaski; Omar Kamal, Ahmed Hegazy, Mohamed Abdelmoneim, Ayman Ashraf; Mohamed Elneny, Amr Al Sulaya, Abdalla El Said; Mohamed Salah, Mostafa Mohamed, Omar Marmoush

Morocco Possible Starting XI: Yassine Bounou; Achraf Hakimi, Romain Saiss, Naif Aguerd, Adam Masina; Imran Louza, Selim Amallah, Sofyan Amrabat, Sofiane Boufal; Youssef En-Nesyri, Ayoub El Kaabi

Morocco are aiming for their first semi-final place since 2004 and for the first time in a while, they genuinely look stronger than the Egyptians. 

While a second AFCON title for Morocco might be too early to call at this point, the Atlas Lions should see off Egypt 2-1 to set them up for a shot at the title.