Egypt forward, Ahmed Hassan says that they will be ready to tackle Nigeria when both teams meet at the opening group game of the Nations Cup in Angola.
Hassan, who spoke to Africansportsdigest.com in Cairo immediately after their friendly with Malawi agrees that the match was an eye opener to them, hence they will do everything to fortify their team.
“We know what we want this is why we’ve started preparations in earnest. Today’s game is one of the matches we needed to play to test our strength and capabilities as well as correcting the mistakes we might have in the team,” he said.
“Winning our opening game will give us the confidence to move on , as defending champions the pressure is on us and that match is very important. This friendly has helped us to know the problem areas.”
An equalizing goal three minutes from time by Maupo Msowoya gave Malawi a 1-1 draw with Egypt in Cairo as both sides prepare for next month’s African Cup of Nations in Angola.
Egypt took the lead late in the first half when Hosni Abd-Rabou converted from the penalty spot, but the southeast African side pulled level in the 87th minute when Msowoya curled in a free kick.
The Pharaohs controlled the possession from the opening whistle, coming close inside 15 minutes through Hazem Emam, and Abd-Rabou struck the post a few minutes later.
After struggling to secure a goal with no immediate result, Egypt finally took a deserved lead when Abd-Rabou beat Swadick Sanudi on a penalty following the hauling down of Hassan Ahmed by the Malawi goalkeeper.
Both sides tried out numerous players as they prepare for the African championship, but it was Msowoya that pulled back the equalizer three minutes from the end when his set piece curled out of the reach of substitute goalkeeper Abdel Wahed al-Sayed.
Egypt open Cup of Nations Group C play on January 12 against Nigeria in Benguela while Malawi open their Group A campaign against Algeria in Luanda one day earlier.