Egypt’s assistant coach has called for the Africa Cup of Nations Final to be moved after his side went through on penalties against Cameroon on Thursday.
The Final is currently scheduled to be held on Sunday, but Carlos Queiroz’s assistant Diaa al-Sayed believes it would hand an unfair advantage to their opponents Senegal.
If Egypt were successful in having the date moved to Monday, it would slightly delay the returns of both Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane back to Liverpool .
Mane ’s Senegal earned their place in the final a day earlier, with a 3-1 win over Burkina Faso in 90 minutes.
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After defeating the host nation Cameroon on penalties, the Egypt coach said : "I ask CAF that the final be played on Monday.
"There is one more day of recovery for Senegal.
"I hope that, as we have advanced the match for third place, we will play on Monday,"
Al-Sayed referred to the third-place play-off between Cameroon and Burkina Faso being moved from Sunday to Saturday.
The format of the tournament has been altered slightly this year, as both semi-finals were previously played on the same day in 2019.
Al-Sayed will play a key role for Egypt in the dugout after manager Carlos Queiroz was sent off by the referee just before extra-time and will be suspended for the Final.
Liverpool fans, meanwhile, may feel conflicted when Mane and Salah lead their respective countries out as captains, with both seeking to win their first major honour at international level.
It remains to be seen whether the pair will be available for the Reds’ next league game against Leicester on Thursday February 10, though Jurgen Klopp was optimistic about their chances of being involved in his press conference on Friday.
