Egyptian national team have left on a nine-hour flight to Comoros for Monday s scheduled game in the second match in Group G in the qualifiers of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, which will be held in Cameroon. The Pharaohs started their qualification campaign with a 1-1 draw against Kenya on Thursday at Borg El-Arab stadium in Alexandria in Group G, which includes Comoros and Togo. Comoros tops Group G with three points after beating Togo 1-0. Egypt and Kenya sit in second place with one point each. The national team held a morning training session led by coach Hossam El-Badry before leaving to Comoros with players who participated in Kenya s game last night taking part in rehabilitation sessions. Egypt s striker Ahmed Gomaa was ruled out from the trip due to a knee injury he sustained during the morning trainings.

Egypt started their 2021 qualifying campaign with a disappointing 1-1 draw by Kenya at Alexandria s Borg El-Arab Stadium on Thursday. Mahmoud Kahraba Abdel-Moneam opened the scoring for the Pharaohs, three minutes before the break, while Kenya s Michael Olunga leveled the score for the visitors seven minutes after the hour-mark. The Pharaohs seemed affected by the absence of Liverpool s classy winger Mohamed Salah, who missed the game due to injury, as they failed to impress against Kenya (108th in FIFA ranking), a team that they outrank by almost 60 places in the FIFA October ranking. Egypt s newly appointed coach Hossam El-Badri introduced Hussein El-Shahat on the right flank, but the Ahly winger failed to fill the void left by Salah s absence. The Pharaohs chances were few in the first half. Kahraba, who got a surprising call-up by coach El-Badri despite his lack of playing time with his Portuguese side CD Aves, had a chance in the 19th minute, but his close-range shot went easily into the hands of the Kenya keeper. The visitors responded quickly as Ayub Timbe and Olunga threatened to open the scoring on two occasions in the 22nd and 23rd minutes respectively, but Egypt s keeper Mohamed El-Shennawi rescued his side on both occasions. Three minutes before the break, Kahraba intercepted a back pass from defender Erick Ouma to get past the onrushing keeper and to score easily in an empty net. The Pharaohs started the second half with a slow rhythm, failing to overcome Kenya s high pressure. El-Badri introduced Ahmed Zizo Hassan at the expense of Hussein El-Shahat in the 56th, but the Zamalek winger failed to make his presence felt. Besiktas midfielder Mohamed Elneny was El-Badri s second substitute in the 65th minute when he replaced attacking midfielder Mohamed Magdi as the Pharaohs coach tried to control the midfield. Two minutes later, Kenya forward Michael Olunga intercepted a poor pass from Elneny to level the score. The Pharaohs pulled on the attack to regain the advantage, but Trezeguet s close range shot was blocked only to fall into the path of Elneny s, whose shot was deflected into the corner. The Egyptian side struggled during the last 10 minutes of the game against a defensive-minded side who were content to share honours with the hosts. Egypt are now second in group G with a single point, two points behind leaders Comoros, who claimed a 1-0 away win over Togo earlier in the day. Egypt will face Comoros on Monday.

Egypt boss Hossam El-Badry said on Wednesday he has "many solutions" to fill the void left by the injured Mohamed Salah when his side face Kenya and Comoros in the Africans Nations Cup qualifiers. The Pharaohs start their qualifying campaign at home to Kenya on Thursday before meeting Comoros away from home four days later. Salah, who joined up with the team on Tuesday, was declared unfit for both games after aggravating an ankle injury in Liverpool s 3-1 win over Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday. "Salah has an ankle problem," El-Badry told the pre-match news conference on Wednesday. "He is not fit to play with the team ... but we have four players in his position and they are capable of replacing him." El-Badry also said he is confident Egypt would be able to overcome Kenya and Comoros. "We are confident that we will achieve our mission," he adedd. Egypt were drawn in Group G with Kenya, Comoros and Togo. The first two teams in the 12 groups of the Nations Cup qualifiers will reach the tournament, which will take place in Cameroon in the summer of 2021.

Egyptian clubs Masry and Pyrmaids FC were drawn in one group in the African Confederation Cup group stage according to the draw that was conducted Tuesday at CAF s Headquarters in Cairo. Masry and Pyramids were drawn in Group A, which also includes Mauritanian debutants Noadhibou and Nigeria s Rangers. Costal side Masry, who are competing in Africa s secondary competition for the fourth successive time, booked their place at the group stage after beating Cot d Or of Seychelles 6-0 on aggregate in the preliminary round. Masry s best achievement in the Confederation Cup history was reaching the semi final against Congo s Vital club in 2018. Meanwhile, Pyramids FC, who are making their first ever appearance in the tournament, reached the group stage with a 5-1 aggregate win over Young Africans of Tanzania in the playoffs. The Port Said-based club Masry will kick off their groups stage campaign by facing Mauritania s Noadhibou away on 1 December, while Pyramids will take on Nigeria s Rangers. Masry and Pyramids will face off in an all-Egyptian confrontations in the third and fourth rounds of the groups stage on 29 December and 16 February according to Masry s official twitter account. Group stage matches will kick off on 1 December 2019.

Blaise Matuidi has been ruled out of France s Euro 2020 qualifiers against Moldova and Albania after fracturing a rib cartilage, the midfielder s club Juventus announced on Monday. "Blaise Matuidi will not participate in the National Team retreat with France, after he withdrew from yesterday s match against Milan," the Italian champions said in a statement on their English language website. "The midfielder today underwent an MRI scan today, which showed a fracture of the cartilage of the tenth rib." Juventus did not state for how long the 32-year-old would be out of action. Matuidi picked up the injury in the 1-0 win over AC Milan that kept Juve top of Serie A, and failed to make the trip to Paris ahead of the two Group H clashes on Thursday and Sunday which could seal qualification for next summer s finals. "Unfortunately I am out of the side, but I m certain that the @equipefrance will qualify," Matuidi said on Twitter. Coach Didier Deschamps has picked Arsenal s uncapped Matteo Guendouzi in Matuidi s place, and is sweating on the fitness of Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Tanguy Ndombele, who suffered a groin injury in Tottenham s 1-1 Premier League draw with Sheffield United. Les Bleus squad will meet at the historic Clairefontaine training camp with France second in their group, level on 19 points with leaders Turkey and four ahead of third-placed Iceland with two matches to play. With two teams qualifying from each group, a win against bottom side Moldova at the Stade de France this week would guarantee a spot in the finals. They will also qualify if Iceland fail to beat Turkey.

Egypt s U-23 football team coach Shawky Gharib has defended his team s strategy in the current U23 Africa Cup of Nations, asking Egyptian fans for more support in Monday s second match against Ghana. The young Pharaohs were criticised for keeping a tightened defence in many occasions in Friday s 1-0 win over Mali in the tournament s opening match, but Gharib said he has his own point of view. "I didn t ask players to concentrate only on defence, but our responsibility was to keep our leadership and win the match. Dominating the ball isn t the most important thing in football as winning is more important in the current period," the coach said in the Ghana pre-match press conference on Sunday. "Egypt s team is a big one and we play only to win and reach the Olympics," he added. After the victory over Mali, Egypt now top Group A with three points, while Cameroon and Ghana share the spoils after their 1-1 draw, also on Friday. The top three in the tournament will reach next year s Olympic Games in Tokyo. "The Ghana match is an important one and we ve studied them well, like we had with Mali. Ghana s team will have bigger ambitions as the team has many good players who seek to play abroad. We have no other option but to win to reach the next round," Gharib explained. Injury worries, fan support It has been confirmed that Ahly s playmaker Nasser Maher will miss the rest of the tournament due to injury, adding more woes for Gharib, who is already missing the services of other key players like Karim Nedved, Taher Mohamed and Mohamed Mahmoud due to different injuries. "We hadn t expected to lose that number of players. We hope we don t lose new players against Ghana after the five players who we already lost," the Egypt coach said. "My team is suffering from some pressures as Egypt is the tournament s hosting country, and also after the failure of the Egyptian senior team in the African Cup of Nations at home last summer. We hope to achieve something good for our country as well as for myself as a coach. "We thank the Egyptian fans for their attendance in the opening match and we hope to see a bigger number in the coming matches. The current generation deserves this support. We promise that we won t let you down and we await your support," he concluded. Egypt finished third in the 2011 U23 Nations Cup and suffered an embarrassing group stage exit in the 2015 edition.

Egypt s U23 coach Shawky Gharib stressed that all Africa U23 Cup of Nations teams are very tough at the pre-game press conference held on Thursday. "All the tournament teams are good and tough and each team aspires to qualify for the 2020 Olympics. Our main target is to qualify for the 2020 Olympics" said Gharib. Egypt play in Group A alongside Ghana, Cameroon, and Mali. Group B includes South Africa, Zambia, Cote d Ivoire, and Nigeria, the current champions. "The toughest rounds of major tournaments always begin at the eighth round. The strongest eight teams in Africa are participating in the current tournament," he explained. The young Pharaohs are scheduled to face Mali on Friday in the opening game of the U23 AFCON, the tournament which qualifies its first three teams for the 2020 Olympics. Gharib depends basically on the domestic players in his squad list for the African tournament. "We started our preparations a long time ago, and the state provided all our needs as we played many matches against different football schools," the former national team assistant coach revealed. "We tried a large number of players. We depend on our local players," he added. Egypt s skipper Ramadan Sobhi promised fans to qualify for the Olympics. "We will do our best against Mali. Our dream is the same dream of all Egyptians, which is to qualify for the Olympics," said the 22-year-old Ahly winger. Egypt s last participation in the Olympics was in 2012 in London.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain notched his fourth goal in as many games in Liverpool s 2-1 Champions League win over Genk and while he is pleased with his free-scoring form since returning from injury the midfielder says he is still short of his best. The 26-year-old missed most of last season with a serious knee injury but has shone on his return, his goal on Tuesday helping Liverpool go top of Group E with nine points. "I feel like I m getting better," he told the club website here “I ve been trying to sort of dribble a bit more and get that side of my game back because that sort of stuff can take a bit of a while when you ve been out for a while. “Overall, I think there s more to come from me for sure.” Captain Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Georginio Wijnaldum have formed a solid midfield trio for Liverpool in recent months but Oxlade-Chamberlain s goalscoring threat and playmaking qualities will give manager Juergen Klopp a selection headache. “To get into the team you ve got to be able to press in a certain way with a certain intensity,” Oxlade-Chamberlain said. “The way Gini, Hendo and Fab did it (against Tottenham Hotspur) was brilliant ... if you re not sort of hitting those standards then you ll struggle to get a game regularly, so I ve been battling to try to get that side of things back.” Liverpool host Premier League champions Manchester City on Sunday.

Head of the Egyptian Football Association s normalisation committee Amr El-Ganainy revealed on Monday that the Ahly-Zamalek Cairo derby will be played at the end of January, adding that the video assistant referee (VAR) will be applied from the beginning of the second half of the season. "The [postponed] Ahly-Zamalek league game will be played by the end of the first half of the current Premier League season, at the end of January, because it s the first available date, due to our commitment to resume the league after it had stopped following the fifth round," El-Ganainy told El-Hadath TV Channel. The Egyptian Premier League stopped after the end of the fifth round because Egypt will be hosting the Africa U23 Cup of Nations from 8 to 22 November. "The Cairo derby was postponed in accordance with a decision by security authorities. If it turns out that I delayed any game after a phone call from any club s president, hold me accountable," he explained. Bringing fans back When El-Ganainy was asked about bringing back fans to the stadiums for league games, he said that they have already returned in the Egypt Cup final between Zamalek and Pyramids FC in September, and in the postponed 2017/2018 Egypt Super Cup game between Ahly and Zamalek, which was played also in September. "All of us at the EFA want to bring the spectators back to the stadiums, and so do the clubs, but sometimes situations are very hard and out of our control," said El-Ganainy. "I hope to see a good presence of the fans in the U23 AFCON, like in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations last summer," he added. VAR El-Ganainy also revealed more details about applying the VAR in domestic competitions, saying, "We have finished all the agreements concerning the use of the VAR starting from the second half of the league, and the announcement will come in a few days." "We will bring the best VAR technology in the world to the Egyptian Premier League. Only the referees training on that technique remains," he added. There have been many rumours about a conflict arising in the normalisation committee due to the postponement of the Derby, which El-Ganainy denied, stressing, "We have never even had a reproach between us, our relationship is the best it could be. All that has been said about conflict between us is just rumour." El-Ganainy promised that the U23 AFCON will be broadcasted with the same high quality of the 2019 AFCON.

Pyramids FC reached the Confederation Cup group stage after claiming a 3-0 win over Young Africans of Tanzania in the second leg of the competition s play-off at the Air Defence Stadium in Cairo on Sunday. The Egyptian side, who won the first-leg 2-1 in Dar es Salaam two weeks ago, went through with a 5-1 aggregate win. Burkinabe midfielder Eric Traore opened the scoring in the 27th minute, slotting home on the rebound after Abdallah El-Said s free kick was parried by the keeper into his path. Forward Mohamed Farouk doubled the lead ten minutes from time after stabbing home a corner from El-Said, who turned scorer deep in stoppage time to crown his superb display and complete the rout. The draw for the group stage of Africa s secondary club competition will be held on 10 November.

Egypt s Pyramids FC and Masry are likely to seal smooth passage to the African Confederation Cup group stage on Sunday after claiming comfortable first-leg advantages in the first legs of the competition s playoff round. Masry host Cote d or of Seychelles in an afternoon kick-off in Port Said, having crushed their lowly opponents 4-0 last week on the road to all but book a ticket to the group phase. Under coach Ihab Galal, the club have been gradually increasing their firepower, with Palestinian striker Mahmoud Wadi in particular earning plaudits for some fine displays. Nigerian Austin Amutu and fellow frontman Ahmed Gomaa were also on target in the first leg, with Masry expected to add to the aggregate score in the return leg. For Pyramids, it might not be that easy but they are still overwhelming favourites to advance to the next round on their first African appearance. They take a 2-1 first-leg lead back home, having overcome Tanzania s Young Africans with a clinical away display, thanks to goals from in-form Burkinabe winger Eric Traore and veteran playmaker Abdallah El-Said.

FIFA has promised to publish more details and give clearer explanations when announcing verdicts in disciplinary and ethics cases, the global soccer body said on Thursday. Until now, FIFA has usually given only the bare minimum details in such cases and until three years ago, many disciplinary decisions involving World Cup qualifying matches were not officially announced to the public at all. "People will be able to compare and contrast decisions .....whether its racism, discrimination or violent conduct," said FIFA s deputy general secretary Alasdair Bell. "The whole problem which has existed is that people aren t able to see why the decisions are taken... and the inevitable consequence is people get suspicious." In a statement on Thursday, FIFA said that it had set up a legal portal "to provide direct access to documents of interest to all stakeholders involved in FIFA s legal and compliance activities." Decisions which would be published in more detail would range from the banning of officials for bribery and match-fixing to racist behaviour by supporters at matches and more mundane cases of bad behaviour by players and coaches. It would also publish documents related to proceedings at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in which FIFA was a party.

In their ongoing battle to break records and outdo each other Lionel Messi went one up on Cristiano Ronaldo. Or make that two up, actually. When Messi scored twice in Barcelona s 5-1 thrashing of mid-table Valladolid in La Liga Tuesday, the Argentine moved past his longtime Portuguese rival on club goals with 608 in 695 games. All have come with Barcelona. Ronaldo has scored 606 goals for Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus in 813 matches. After the game at the Camp Nou, the softly spoken Messi didn t discuss his goal-scoring record but Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde was happy to gush about the 32-year-old. "He s got this talent nobody else has," Valverde told reporters. "He can get past anybody. "It s not just a question of an individual move. We have these times in training, you think he s going to pass to the left or right, but he passes somewhere you can t anticipate. You only see it with this type of player." Messi gave Barcelona a 3-1 lead with a trademark curling free kick into the top corner -- it was his 50th career free kick goal -- and made it 4-1 after he danced into the box and rifled a shot past helpless keeper Jordi Masip. His sumptuous through ball to Luis Suarez accounted for one of his two assists on a night when Valverde s men reclaimed top spot in La Liga ahead of Granada following a seventh straight victory. The five-time Ballon d Or winner -- Ronaldo has five, too -- has now scored in four straight games after he missed four games with a calf injury and later sustained a thigh issue. When he found the back of the net against Slavia Prague in the Champions League last week, Messi became the first player to score in 15 consecutive Champions League seasons. Another milestone. "He s feeling better every day," said Valverde. "He s getting back into form after his spell out of the team. He scored a goal the other day in Prague and could have scored another. You could see he was a little bit fresher." Perhaps helping in that respect was an unanticipated break over the weekend. Lionel Messi scored twice in Barcelona s 5-1 win over Valladolid Tuesday. Barcelona was due to face bitter rival Real Madrid in "El Clasico" but the derby was postponed until December 18 due to the possibility of unrest stemming from lengthy jail terms given to Catalan separatist leaders. Visit CNN.com/football for more news, features and videos As for Ronaldo, he can overtake Messi again Wednesday when Juventus plays Genoa in Serie A. A win would see the reigning eight-time league champion replace Inter atop the division.

Egyptian champions Ahly will head to the UAE on Thursday to start a training camp amid the current league suspension, football director Sayed Abdel-Hafiz revealed on Tuesday. The Egyptian Premiere League is currently on hold due to the national team s commitments at the 2021 African Cup of Nations qualifiers as well as the national Olympic team s participation at the Africa U-23 Cup of Nations at home next month. Abdel-Hafiz also stressed that the technical staff is continuing the attempts to play a friendly match during the UAE camp. According to Ahly s official website, Swiss coach Rene Weiler is planning to make the best use of the current suspension to prepare the team well for the league resumption. After three matches, holders Ahly currently lie third at the league table with nine points, just two behind leaders Pyramids FC, who played two matches more.

Egyptian side Masry have all but sealed their place in the CAF Confederation Cup group stage after crushing Cote d or 4-0 in Seychelles in the first leg of the competition s playoff round on Sunday. Ahmed Yasser opened the scoring as early as the sixth minute, volleying home from a tight angle after a cross was floated to the far post. Palestinian striker Mahmoud Wadi doubled the lead in the 14th minute with a far-post header following a free kick before Masry scored twice in stoppage time to complete an impressive victory. Nigerian Austin Amutu was on target with an easy tap-in into an empty net and striker Ahmed Gomaa added the fourth with a superb overhead kick. Masry will have an easy mission when they host Cote d or in the second leg in Port Said. Cote d or s misery was compounded by the Masry loss, having earlier suffered a humiliating 16-1 aggregate defeat by South Africa s Mamelodi Sundowns in the African Champions League preliminary round.

Egypt s Pyramids FC and Masry will be looking to reach the CAF Confederation Cup group stage as they play their respective first-legs of the playoff round on Sunday. Debutants Pyramids face Tanzania s Young Africans away from home while Masry, who reached the semi-finals of the 2018 edition, play Cote d or of Seychelles, also on the road. Pyramids are buoyed by their hard-earned qualification for the playoff round, having defeated Belouizdad 1-0 in Algeria to go through 2-1 on aggregate. They also moved top of the Egyptian Premier League table with an exciting 3-2 win over El-Entag El-Harby last week, although Cairo duo Ahly and Zamalek will overtake them should they win their rescheduled matches. Veteran playmaker Abdallah El-Said produced a virtuoso display in the victory over Entag, scoring two goals to take his tally to five league goals in as many games so far this season. His presence will be crucial as Pyramids seek to grab a positive result away from home. Their opponents, Young Africans, were eliminated from the African Champions League after a 3-2 aggregate loss to Zambia s ZESCO United in the preliminary round. On the other hand, Masry, who advanced to the playoff with an easy 7-2 aggregate victory over Zanzibar s Malindi, are struggling for consistency in the domestic league. They beat promoted FC Masr 2-0 in their last league outing to end a run of two successive losses. With pressure mounting on coach Ihab Galal, he will be desperate to help Masry continue their bid towards a first continental trophy. Their task to qualify for the group stage should not be difficult, given that Cote d or suffered an embarrassing 16-1 aggregate defeat against Sundowns, with the 11-1 second-leg win for the South Africans marking a Champions League record. a

After his recent recovery from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury to his knee and his return to normal trainings, Ahly s unlucky midfielder Mohamed Mahmoud has sustained the same injury but in the other leg. "Doctor Ihab Ali has confirmed that Mohamed Mahmoud is suffering from an ACL injury," the player s agent Nader Shawki told reporters early on Thursday. "We have started the process to send the player to Germany to start a new recovery programme with German doctor Andreas Weiler," he added. "The players is expected to be out of action from another eight to nine weeks," the agent announced. The 20-year-old midfielder left Wednesday s training session and went to the hospital to undergo medical scans on his injured knee. Mahmoud had been sidelined for a month after he sustained an ACL injury to his knee during the league match against Smouha last September. The former Wadi Degla player, who joined Ahly during the winter transfer window, made his debut with Ahly as a substitute in Friday s league loss to Pyramids FC, before playing from the start in Tuesday s 1-0 win over Smouha. He was stretched off after 57 minutes due to his knee injury. The Cairo giants announced the signing of Mahmoud on 1 December for a four-and-a-half-year deal amid their bid to strengthen an underachieving squad as they seek to win the league title for the fourth straight season. The attacking midfielder, who rose to prominence this season with some fine displays in the heart of Degla s midfield, earned a call-up to Egypt s squad under former Mexican coach Javier Aguirre. Mahmoud made his international debut in Egypt s 2-0 victory over eSwatini in the African Nations Cup qualifiers last year. Ahly are currently third on the Egyptian Premier League table with nine points from only three games, with two games in hand, two points behind leaders Pyramids FC, who played two games more.

The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) decided on Tuesday to postpone domestic league matches for a month but stopped short of meeting a key demand from Cairo giants Ahly. Ahly, furious after their Cairo derby encounter against Zamalek was postponed, insisted they would not play any league game until they meet their bitter rivals. The match s original date was 19 October.

Veteran forward Abdallah El-Said scored two classy goals, helping Pyramids FC overcome Entag Harby in a league game on Monday. The 34-year-old opened the scoring five minutes before the break while Eric Traore doubled the lead five minutes later. The former Ahly forward added the third goal in the 68th minutes, to top the Egyptian league top scorers list with 5 goals so far and take his tally to 95 goals in the Egyptian league. El-Entag defender Moaz El-Henawi made it 3-1 after converting a penalty with ten minutes remaining and Mohamed Vieira narrowed the gap three minutes later. Pyramids FC are now on the top of the league table with 11 points from five games, one point ahead of second-placed Zamalek who played four games and two off Ahly who played three games. Later on the day Masry eased-past FC Masr 2-0 at Suez stadium.

Sports marketing company Sports HQ offered on Monday to organise the postponed Cairo derby between Ahly and Zamalek in the Egyptian Premier league in the United Arab Emirates. "Since we believe in both the strength and the big value of the Egyptian league and also amid the trend of seeing all big leagues expanding their popularity in other countries, we would like to suggest organising the Cairo derby in the UAE," reads a statement by Sports HQ.

Generation Foot first football team of Senegal arrived in Cairo Sunday to finally face Zamalek on Thursday in the second leg of the round of 32 match in the CAF Champions League, which was twice rescheduled after much back and forth since its original date of 28 September. Generation Foot beat Zamalek 2-1 in the first leg on 14 September in Senegal. The two sides were originally scheduled to meet in Cairo on 28 September in the second leg of the competition s second round but CAF postponed the match for one day and approved it to be moved from Cairo to Alexandria per the request of the Egyptian club, which cited security concerns in the capital. However, Generation Foot, citing CAF s regulations which require the approval of the visiting team in case of any such short-notice changes, decided not to play the match at Alexandria s Borg El-Arab Stadium. On the day of the rescheduled match, Zamalek warmed up on the pitch before the referee called off the game 15 minutes after the set kickoff time, The game will be played at Al-Salam International Stadium on Thursday evening. The five-time Champions League winners Zamalek need to win 1-0 against the Senegalese side to book a place in the group stage.