Our prediction for this World Cup 2026 match:
All eyes will be on Stade de Franceville when Gabon and Egypt go head to head in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. Gabon suffered a 2-1 loss to Libya in the opening match of their WC qualifying campaign, with Arsenal ace Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang failing to open his goalscoring account. The Panthers are low on confidence ahead of the visit of Egypt, therefore, we do not believe that home win should be considered.
The good news for the Pharaohs, on the other hand, is that both Mohamed Salah and Mohamed Elneny return to the squad after the duo missed the Angola game. Egypt aim to keep their 100% record in Group F intact, and seeing that Gabon experienced all sorts of problems at the back in their opener, we are tempted to put our money on the visiting team. In their last meeting in a competitive match, back in 1994, Egypt crushed Gabon 4-0.
Highlighted Player (Bruno Ecuele Manga):
Bruno Ecuele Manga is a defender who plays for Cardiff City and the Gabonese national football team. The player who was born on 16 July, 1988, began his senior career at FC 105 Libreville. In 2006 he signed a contract with Bordeaux B, making 40 appearances for the French outfit, but he did not play for the senior team.
Manga played for the likes of Rodez, Angers and Lorient in France as well before joining Cardiff City on 1 September, 2014. The Gabonese defender signed a €5 million deal with the Championship side. On 1 November, 2014 Manga scored his first goal for the Bluebirds, finding the net in a 3-1 victory over Leeds United.
Bruno Ecuele represented Gabon at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, but les Pantheres were eliminated in the group stages of the tournament. Speaking of his individual honours, Manga was named Cardiff City Player of the Year for the 2014/2015 season.
Highlighted Team (Egypt):
Egypt are an African football team that plays their home games at Borg El Arab Stadium in Alexandria. Over the years Egypt have established themselves as the most successful national team in Africa and you should bear in mind that they won their seventh African Cup of Nations trophy in 2010.
The Pharaohs participated at the World Cup finals on two occasions (1934 and 1990) and they failed to make it to the knockout stages of the showpiece tournament. Egypt suffered a 4-2 loss to Hungary on their World Cup debut and it has to be noted that the African team scored no more than one goal at the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
Ahmed Hassan is the player with the most caps for the Egyptian national team (184), while Hossam Hassan is the team’s top scorer (68). The colour of Egypt’s home kit is red and white and the Pharaohs play their away games in white shits and black shorts.