How have the two continental giants fared as they’ve made their way to Sunday’s Africa Cup of Nations showpiece?

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  Matchday One

  Zimbabwe came within seconds of holding Senegal in the two sides’ tournament opener, with Sadio Mane stepping up to bag a 97th-minute penalty after Kelvin Madzongwe was penalised for a handball in the box.

  The Teranga Lions headed into the game with only 18 players due to injuries and coronavirus diagnoses, but monopolised the possession in a one-sided encounter.

  Nonetheless, their game lacked precision and a cutting edge amidst humid, energy-sapping conditions.

  For Egypt, things were even tougher, as they were blown away by a rampant Nigeria side, who should have won more convincingly than 1-0.

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  Matchday Two

  Yet another turgid performance from Senegal, as they and Guinea ground out a 0-0 victory with the Syli Nationale slightly edging the possession stakes.

  Egypt bounced back from their victory over Nigeria with an unconvincing 1-0 triumph over Guinea-Bissau, who thought they’d nabbed a late equaliser when Mama Balde bagged a goal of the tournament contender after cutting in from the left flank.

  VAR ultimately ruled out the stunning effort, denying the islanders a second point, and getting the North Africans back to winning ways.

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  Matchday Three

  Mohamed Abdelmomen scored the only goal of the game for Egypt as they downed Sudan in a low-key encounter in Yaounde, with the Pharaohs largely faring well with their opponents’ long-ball approach but unable to carve open clear opportunities.

  Senegal were even more effectively neutralised in Bafoussam, playing out an underwhelming 0-0 draw against their lowly opponents.

  At this stage of the tournament, while both Senegal and Egypt were largely looking solid, neither were truly looking like title contenders.

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  Quarter-finalEgypt took their game to new heights when faced with high-flying Ivory Coast, who entered the contest on the back of eliminating reigning champions Algeria in their final group game.

  The Pharaohs at times rode their luck, but created over 20 chances and kept the Elephants at bay before progressing on penalties when Eric Bailly missed his spot kick.

  On paper, Senegal had an easier ride, winning 2-0 against nine-men Cape Verde, although the contest didn’t exactly pan out as expected, with the Teranga Lions only taking the lead through Mane after the Liverpool man had suffered a head injury in a collision with goalkeeper Vozinha.

  Bamba Dieng finally guaranteed progress in the 92nd minute.

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