When is Senegal vs Egypt World Cup 2022 playoff?
The two sides met in the AFCON 2021 final, with Sadio Mané's Lions getting the better of Mohamed Salah's Pharaohs to lift the title. But revenge is on.
The 2022 World Cup tournament in Qatar kicks off on Monday 21 November at the Al Bayt stadium in Al Khor with a match that will feature the host country. And despite most of the big teams in global football expected to be there, one thing is for sure: there will not be space for both AFCON 2021 finalists.
Egypt or Senegal for World Cup place
On Sunday evening we watched 120 minutes of play in the final of the African Cup of Nations - in what few would describe as a classic game - and Senegal were ultimately victorious over Egypt in the penalty shootout. It was a match that saw two of Liverpool FC’s attacking stars go head to head and come the spot kicks only Sadio Mané got to take his. By slotting it away low and hard to the keeper’s right, and given that others had missed before, it meant the Pharaohs’ main man, Mohamed Salah, would not get a chance to take his side’s fifth. The Lions of Teranga had their first ever title.
Often in these situations, a chance to get revenge can be a distant hope, sometimes never being fulfilled due to the way fixtures fall. But Salah and his countrymen can already taste it this time around. And the prize is almost as great.
When the draw for the African qualifying playoffs was made on 22 January, these two nations were pitted against one another. No one knew then that they would go on to meet in the continental final. But it was clear from the game that who ends up in FIFA’s showpiece competition is anyone’s guess.
The playoff is a two-legged affair, first being played in Egypt on 23 March with the return leg in Senegal on 29 March.