AhmedHasan
Egypt won its sixth African Cup of Nations title, and second in a row, by
beating Cameroon 1-0 behind Mohamed Aboutreika's goal in the final Sunday.
Aboutreika scored in the 77th minute, converting Mohamed Zidan's cross
for his fourth goal of the tournament.
"It is a great feeling to score for the country," said Aboutreika, who also
netted the winning penalty in the 2006 win against Ivory Coast. "It's not about
me scoring goals, but it's about all the players and the 80 million people
supporting us back home."
Egyptians poured into the streets in Cairo and elsewhere in the country
waving flags and beating drums late Sunday to celebrate the victory. The scene
was especially dramatic in Cairo's twin city of Giza, where crowds wielding
flaming aerosol cans of flooded the eight-lane Arab League street and brought
traffic to a halt.
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Cameroon coach Otto Pfister had been trying to become only the second German
to win the African title. It was his second attempt after leading Ghana to the
1992 final against Ivory Coast.
Winfried Schafer won the 2002 title with Cameroon.
Using Samuel Eto'o as a lone striker, Cameroon created few chances in the
match.
"We showed a lot of heart," Cameroon defender Bill Tchato said.
"Congratulations to Egypt. We came up against a team that deserved to win. It is
no surprise that they were champions of Africa two years ago."
FIFA president Sepp Blatter, Ghanian President John Kufuor and former Chelsea
manager Jose Mourinho attended the match.
It was a crucial error from Rigobert Song that led to Aboutreika's goal.
The Cameroon captain had two chances to clear the ball but got tangled in a
needless duel with Zidan and lost the ball. Zidan squared it perfectly and
Aboutreika finished powerfully in the bottom right corner.
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Realizing his error, Song pulled his shirt into his mouth and pointed to the
skies, as if seeking forgiveness. Goalkeeper Carlos Kameni ran over and
comforted Song.
Cameroon struggled to get shots on goal and there was no player on hand to
turn home Stephane M'Bia's cross in the 83rd. Song had a chance in injury time
but headed Geremi's cross over.
Egypt dominated the second half, negating the threat from Eto'o, who received
hardly any passes and failed to score for the third straight match.
Hosni Abd Rabou hit the post with a header from Amr Zaky's cross in the 62nd
as the Indomitable Lions tired.
Kameni burst into tears at the final whistle and had to be comforted by
Eto'o. Defender Augustin Binya dropped to his knees and gazed into the distance
as Egypt's players rolled on the field and hugged in celebration.
| Cricket Scorecards
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