Egypt beat Libya

Cairo:

The 25th African Cup of Nations began on Friday with Cairo's International Stadium playing host to a spectacular opening ceremony. Over the next three weeks, 16 countries will be aiming to take the crown with the Ivory Coast, Cameroon and holders Tunisia among the pre-tournament favourites. After the fireworks in the stadium, the home fans were hoping for a similar display on the pitch shortly after as host nation Egypt faced North African rivals Libya. And they were given good reason to cheer on 17 minutes when Mohamed Abdel Wahab's fine in-swinging corner was headed home at the far post by Mido. The Tottenham Hotspur striker has been making an impact in the English Premier League this season and also looks set to pose problems for defences in this tournament. Five minutes later, Egypt doubled their advantage when Mohamed Abo Treka's perfectly placed free-kick left goalkeeper Luis de Agustini rooted to the spot. It was a wonderful goal from the Al Ahli midfielder, which put the Pharaohs in control of the match. Although Libya occasionally threatened, any hopes of a comeback were extinguished on 78 minutes when a defensive mix-up culminated in de Agustini hauling down Mohamed Barakat in the area. The Uruguayan-born keeper had already been booked and he soon made a tearful exit after referee Lassina Pare showed him a second yellow card followed by the red. Substitute keeper Meftah Ghazalla did well to keep out Mido's penalty attempt but had no chance with Ahmed Hassan's rebound, which sealed the win. But with Ivory Coast and Morocco completing Group A, coach Hassan Shehata knows that his side will be stretched further as the tournament unfolds. (AP)