DR Congo book AFCON quarter-final spot as they see off Egypt 

DR Congo have booked a spot in the 2023 AFCON quarter-finals after defeating Egypt 7-8 on penalties following a 1-1 draw after extra time at the Stade de San Pédro on Sunday night.

Below are some talking points from this entertaining CAF AFCON last 16 clash between Egypt and DR Congo. 

SOUTH AFRICAN REFEREE ABONGILE TOM IN CHARGE

South African referee Abongile Tom took charge of the Egypt and DR Congo game and made some decisive decisions in the match to keep things in order. His calmness and taking command of the game was spot on.

This was the third game Tom took charge of at the ongoing AFCON tournament held in Ivory Coast.

GOALSCORERS ON THE DAY

DR Congo were the first team to find the back of the net in the 37th minute through Meschack Elia.

However, Congo’s joy and happiness were short-lived as Egypt levelled matters just six minutes after the restart by Mostafa Mohamed from the spot kick.

The game went to the penalty shootout after 120 tiresome minutes, where Congo walked away victorious.

DR CONGO BOOK QUARTER-FINAL SPOT AFTER BEATING EGYPT

Having booked the quarter-final spot, DR Congo will face Guinea, who eliminated Equatorial Guinea with a 1-0 scoreline

The Congolese side will take on Guinea on Friday, 2 February 2024. The game will take place at the Olympic Stadium of Ebimpé, with the kick-off set for 22:00.

Other nations that have qualified for the quarter-finals of this prestigious tournament so far are Angola and Nigeria.

MOHAMED HAMDI SENT OFF

Mohamed Hamdi of Egypt received a red card in the first half of the extra time. This comes after he received two yellow cards.

MOSTAFA MOHAMED JUST CAN’T STOP SCORING

Egypt’s Mostafa Mohamed has become the second player to score a goal in four consecutive games at the same CAF AFCON edition.

Cameroon’s Vincent Aboubakar has done it before in 2021.

RELATED STORY: Nigeria beat Cameroon to book place in the quarter-finals