Angola coach Aliou Cisse admits he wanted to avoid Egypt in 2027 Africa Cup opener

Angola manager Aliou Cisse says he would have preferred not to face Egypt in the opening match of their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.

Egypt host Angola at Cairo International Stadium on Friday, 25 September, in the first round of qualifying.

Speaking at his pre-match news conference, the Senegalese coach congratulated Egypt on their performance at the 2026 World Cup and praised manager Hossam Hassan.

“Being here is an opportunity to congratulate Egypt on their outstanding performance at the 2026 World Cup,” Cisse said. “Hossam Hassan achieved something exceptional. He did not only make the Egyptian fans happy, but also all African fans.”

Cisse also revealed that Angola would be without several players for the match, with some absent for family reasons and others based in Turkey who had not joined the squad.

“We have many absences,” he added. “There are players missing for family reasons and players in Turkey who did not come, but in the end I currently have a wonderful group of players.”

He concluded: “Of course, I would not have wanted to face Egypt in the first match of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.”

Angola will be the visitors at Cairo International Stadium, with Tazkarti having opened ticket sales for the fixture.

The Egyptian Football Association had previously announced ticket prices for Egypt’s matches against Angola and South Africa, with 40,000 supporters permitted to attend each game. Tickets cost 20 Egyptian pounds for third-class seats, 50 pounds for second class, 150 pounds for first class and 300 pounds for the grandstand.

The match will kick off at 22:00 on Friday and will be broadcast on beIN Sport 1, with Ali Mohamed Ali providing commentary. In Egypt, the game will also be shown terrestrially on ON Sport, with Mohamed El-Kawaliny on commentary duty.

Egypt and Angola met in the group stage of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, drawing 0-0.

Egypt have never lost to Angola in eight previous meetings. The Pharaohs have won four of those matches, while the other four ended in draws.

Egypt’s qualifying group also includes Malawi and South Sudan.