A third successive 0-0 draw ensured Guinea-Bissau kicked off only their third-ever African Cup of Nations (AFCON) appearance by claiming what could prove to be a precious point. Their two prior AFCON appearances saw them bow out at the group stage, and whilst a win against Egypt would effectively secure their safe passage to the next round, they haven’t won any of their six historical AFCON group stage games to date (D3, L4).It’s now been 458 minutes since Guinea-Bissau found the back of the net, so it would appear they will have their work cut out to find that elusive three points, but they can take heart from the fact they netted 11 goals in the four games prior to that run – seeing two of their three game openers in that sequence come inside the opening 20 minutes.Defeat to Tunisia in December ended Egypt’s chances of going unbeaten throughout 2021, and it’s now five internationals without a victory for the ‘Pharaohs’ (90 mins only: D3, L2). The latter of those defeats ensured Egypt also got off to a winless start, faltering to a 1-0 loss against Nigeria – mustering just two shots on target in 90 minutes.Carlos Queiroz’s side have now conceded the opener in four of their last five matches, and the first goal here could be crucial in deciding how this game ends, with Egypt having not won inside 90 minutes from 1-0 down since November 2018. The Egyptians are struggling at the other end too and are now without a goal in their last three matches, despite the reintroduction of Mohamed Salah against Nigeria.Players to watch: Mama Baldé was the last Guinea-Bissau player to score a goal – netting against Sudan in September. Meanwhile, Egypt may look to Mostafa Mohamed who has scored five league goals for Galatasaray this season, and four proved to be his side’s first goal of the game.
