Egypt defended their 2006 African Cup of Nations championship successfully today in a 1-0 victory over Cameroon, giving the Pharaohs a record 6th continental title.

It was a rematch of the opening game in Group C, a 4-2 Egyptian victory. Mohamed Zidan scored twice in that game for the winners and his success against Cameroon continued today. The Hamburg striker came on as a substitute, won the ball off Galatasaray and Cameroon defender Rigobert Song in a hard-fought battle at the corner of the 18-yard box, and then played the ball square to Mohamed Aboutreika. Aboutreika was in alone on goal and slotted the ball coolly into the net in the 77th minute for his fourth goal of the tournament; obviously none of which were as important as that one.

Song nearly redeemed himself in an effort to equalize for Cameroon at the very end, but his header from a Geremi cross went over the net. Geremi, the Newcastle midfielder, had a particularly good game for Cameroon in a losing effort; his pinpoint free kicks, crossing, and passing caused a lot of trouble for the Egyptian defenders but in the end, they were able to keep the clean sheet.

Cameroon suffered an early blow as Arsenal starlet Alexandre Song had to be taken off after only a quarter of an hour due to a nagging injury he’d taken into the final. Song’s absence freed up space in the midfield and allowed Egypt’s five midfielders to have their way in that crucial area of the pitch.

Egypt’s only Premiership player, Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky, entered as a late substitute after starting multiple games in the tournament previously for the Pharaohs. I would expect to see some players from this Egyptian team receive offers to play overseas as most of them play their club soccer domestically, but they’ll need to be financially lucrative because they currently get paid very well at Al-Ahly, Zamalek, and Al-Zamalek, the three teams for which most of these players ply their trade.

Cameroon’s lineup included Geremi and Song from the Premiership, as well as star Barcelona striker and leading goalscorer at this tournament, Samuel Eto’o.

I did pick Ivory Coast to win this tournament before it started but when they lost, I will admit (and you can go back to look at my semifinal recap for proof) that I hopped on the Egyptian bandwagon and went with the Pharaohs to beat Cameroon today. For Egypt, this sixth title has to be one of the most special because they defended their 2006 championship and proved most pundits, including me, wrong for tabbing either Ghana or Ivory Coast to win this edition.

In yesterday’s Third Place Game, I was happy to see that both Ghana and Ivory Coast came out to play and showed passion instead of just playing out the string. Ghana, the host nation, emerged with a 4-2 victory after scoring three times in the last 20 minutes of the match.

Portsmouth midfielder Sulley Muntari opened the scoring in the 10th minute with an absolute rocket of a free kick. Muntari’s sweet left foot was responsible for three goals in this tournament and he set up a couple others as well. This is a player who really stood out to me during the 2006 World Cup, when he played in an integral role in Ghana’s run to the Round of 16. I selected him as my “Top Newcomer” to the Premiership in my preseason awards (my predictions for end-of-season superlatives), and his play in the Premiership and African Cup of Nations has supported that pick.

Ivory Coast equalized and then took a 2-1 lead through a pair of first-half goals from Werder Bremen striker Boubacar Sanogo, who was making his first start of the tournament. Sanogo nearly finished off a natural hat trick in the 39th minute, but his left-footed shot came off the crossbar and out after he was played in by Chelsea’s Didier Drogba, who had a decent game himself today.

Ghana then took the match by the horns and ended the game by scoring three consecutive goals, one of which came from former MLS star and current Nottingham Forest player Junior Agogo.

This was a match that Ivory Coast could have put to bed in the first half by capitalizing on their chances when they already had a 2-1 lead, but they left the hosts in the game and paid for it in the end.

The Black Stars played the entire tournament without their captain and talismanic central midfielder, Stephen Appiah, who was sitting out with a blood clot in his knee. With Appiah and Muntari in the lineup together, Ghana could have won this tournament but will now be looking to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. A third place finish is nothing to be ashamed of and French coach Claude LeRoy will look to build from the momentum established here.

On the other hand, Ivory Coast will be bitterly disappointed with finishing fourth. They were a trendy pick to win this competition and now have to redeem themselves in 2010, which they should be able to do because of their squad’s relatively young combined age right now. The players will be in their primes in 2010 and honestly, they’ll have to make a statement in South Africa because this is a team that could be on a downward, rebuilding slide after that tournament.

Congratulations to Egypt for winning and to Ghana, both for finishing third and for putting on a successful, entertaining tournament. This is what soccer is all about and hopefully the next African Cup of Nations (Angola-2010) will be widely available on TV here in the US.

Alright, so I was 0-2 in predicting the results of today’s African Cup of Nations semifinals. I think that’s what makes this game so special. I went with both of the “favorites” for all of the logical reasons, and my logic was proven to be skewed. Hey, I can live with that.

The biggest surprise, at least as far I was concerned, was Egypt’s 4-1 victory over Ivory Coast. It wasn’t the fact that Egypt won that surprised me; after all, Egypt are the defending champions of this tournament. It was the margin of victory that really shocked me.

Striker Amr Zaky bagged the game-winning goal for Egypt for the second straight game; in fact, Zaky scored twice in a span of five minutes in the second half today to propel the Pharaohs.

Egypt went up 1-0 through a goal from former Sheffield United midfielder Ahmed Fathi in the 12th minute. Fathi took a bouncing ball outside the 18 and sent it towards goal, though a significant deflection was what beat the Ivorian goalkeeper.

The match then went scoreless until Zaky’s first goal of the game in the 62nd minute to put Egypt up 2-0. Lyon forward Abdul Kader Keïta pulled a goal back for my pretournament picks just a minute later, but Zaky scored again in the 67th minute to throw a wrench in Ivory Coast’s comeback hopes.

Mohamed Aboutreika, who has scored a whopping 81 goals in 128 league appearances for Egyptian club side El-Ahly, added an insurance goal in second half injury time to account for the final margin.

The scoreline was a bit misleading; Chelsea striker Didier Drogba had three very good chances denied by Egypt’s goalkeeper, Essam Al Hadari, when it was still 1-0.

Six Premiership players were in Ivory Coast’s starting lineup but surprisingly, Middlesbrough’s Mohamed Shawky didn’t play for Egypt today although he’d started in their previous games and is a fixture at the holding midfield position for his country.

In today’s other semifinal, Cameroon beat hosts Ghana 1-0 behind a 72nd minute goal from former Colorado Rapids midfielder and Alain Nkong. Nkong came on as a substitute 10 minutes prior to his goal, and his appearance was only the second in his international career.

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o continued his prolific tournament with the assist on Nkong’s game-winner. A superb through ball sent Nkong in on goal and his opened-foot finish allowed the team and German coach Otto Pfister to book a place in the final, where they’ll meet Egypt.

Pfister has managed across Africa in both a club and international capacity since 1972 and has never won an African Cup of Nations. He’s been in charge of a U-17 World Cup winner (Ghana-1992) and a U-19 African Cup of Nations winner (Ivory Coast-1983), but has never won Africa’s continental championship.

It was a pretty even game and both countries had their chances. I was surprised that Cameroon’s defense was able to shut down Ghana but to be fair, the latter were forced to play with Michael Essien in the back to replace the suspended captain, John Mensah, and were without Asamoah Gyan and Laryea Kingston altogether due to injury.

The final is now set. Egypt will meet Cameroon in Accra on Sunday. Prior to that, we’ll see the Third Place game between Ivory Coast and Ghana. Because of that third place game, Salomon Kalou, Didier Drogba, and Michael Essien will all miss the huge match between Chelsea and Liverpool and that should offset the absence of star striker Fernando Torres for Liverpool.

I’ll go with the defending champions to beat Cameroon and repeat. They’ve defied my expectations so far so I might as well ride the form team, although Cameroon are playing well right now also. Of course, Egypt did thump Cameroon 4-2 during the group stage but if anything, I think that result plays in the latter’s favor as they’ll want revenge and Egypt may come out a bit cocky.

These third place games are always crapshoots. Teams either come out with no energy and spirit because they’re not in the final, or they come out to play with no pressure on their shoulders and relatively little on the line. The better team is Ivory Coast, particularly if Ghana’s injury problems don’t get better over the next couple of days.

After squandering an early 2-0 lead, Cameroon needed a 92nd minute goal from Stade Rennais midfielder Stéphane Mbia to beat Tunisia today and advance to the semifinals. The extra time goal was Mbia’s second of the game and spoiled any hope of a Tunisian upset, which was only made possible in the first place after an 81st minute tally from Yassine Chikhaoui levelled the match at 2-2.

The same Tunisia defense that had been stout in the group stage (3 goals allowed in 3 matches) was awful today; their marking was atrocious and in truth, they were fortunate to only concede three goals to a Cameroonian squad that racked up 10 goals in their group games. To be fair, Tunisia did manage to contain star striker Samuel Eto’o, but one man does not make a team.

The Eagles of Carthage started their only two Premiership players, Birmingham City’s Mehdi Nafti and national captain Radhi Jaidi, as usual, although French coach Roger Lemerre made multiple changes to the side that drew with Angola on Thursday.

The four-time champions of this tournament and Group D winners this year exit in heartbreaking fashion. They came from behind and got a late goal to equalize, only to have their dreams shattered by a goal just two minutes into extra time.

Cameroon’s lineup featured three Premiership players in Alexander Song, Geremi, and Andre Bikey. Geremi, a Newcastle midfielder, scored directly off a free kick to put the victors up 2-0 in the 27th minute.

The Indomitable Lions’ victory propels them to a semifinal matchup against Ghana, the host nation, on Thursday. Goals could be aplenty with the firepower each team possesses, so I’m really looking forward to that game. My pick: The home team gets it done, 3-1.

In today’s other quarterfinal, Egypt wrecked my pre-round predictions and beat Angola 2-1. I had gone 3-3 until this result, and it was a game in which Angola was clearly the unluckier of the two teams.

Egypt went ahead 1-0 on a PK (as a result of a questionable handball decision) from Hosni Abd Rabou in the 23rd minute, which was his third goal from the spot in the tournament. A left-footed screamer from Manucho, Manchester United’s newest signing, levelled the match just four minutes later however, and that goal was Manucho’s fourth of the tournament.

Amr Zaky “scored” the winning goal seven minutes before halftime, and it was just one of those “right place, right time” situations. Angola’s defense failed to cut out a cross and it cost them, as the ball ended up deflecting off the onrushing Zaky’s arm and into the net.

Angola ran out of gas at the end and Egypt was able to attack and counter-attack succesfully, though they didn’t get the insurance goal which would’ve put the game away.

Despite the loss today, the Black Antelopes are clearly on an upward trend, having qualified for World Cup 2006 and giving a good account of themselves there as well. Portuguese coach Luís Oliveira Gonçalves has a team that will host the 2010 African Nations Cup and should have every chance to make a run there and in the 2010 World Cup, if they can qualify for that.

With the victory, the Pharaohs move on to the semifinals where they’ll meet my choice, Ivory Coast. This match is going to be a little trickier for Ivory Coast than a lot of outsiders would expect, but I’m going to ride my favorites until the very end. Ivory Coast-2, Egypt-1.

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o became the top scorer in African Cup of Nations finals history today when he converted his second PK of the tournament in the 28th minute, and Cameroon benefited from a Sudanese own goal just six minutes later and went on to win 3-0. Eto’o also scored again right before the end of the game to add to his now-record count of 16 tallies. Cameroon bossed the match from start to finish and although Sudan played much better in the second half, they exit the tournament with no points and no goals scored.

In today’s other game, Egypt and Zambia played to a 1-1 draw and that point allowed the Pharaohs to win Group C. Zambia came into the match knowing they really needed a three-goal victory to advance, so an 88nd minute equalizer from Christopher Katongo was little consolation to the Southern African side. Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky played the entire match for Egypt and despite knowing they only needed a draw to win the group, coach Hassan Shehata opted to play his usual 3-5-2 lineup.

Final Group C Standings (teams in bold advance):

1. Egypt (7 points, +5 goal differential)
2. Cameroon (6 pts, +5 GD)
3. Zambia (4 pts, -1 GD)
4. Sudan (0 pts, -9 GD)

Group play concludes tomorrow with Group D, and Tunisia and Angola are in the driver’s seat to qualification as they both sit on four points while Senegal and South Africa have their work cut out for them with one point each. Interestingly enough, we’ll see those groups of two play against each other tomorrow and while a draw would seal the deal for Tunisia and Angola, both coaches have said their sides will be playing to win. My guess? That game will end in a draw.

Samuel Eto’o converted a PK in the 66th minute to draw even with Ivory Coast legend Laurent Pokou for most goals scored (14) in the African Cup of Nations finals and Joseph Job bagged a brace to propel Cameroon over Zambia 5-1 yesterday. This was a game Cameroon absolutely needed to win after their opening loss to Egypt and the Indomitable Lions took care of business. Only a 90th minute goal from Christopeher Katongo prevented Zambia from being shut out. Newcastle midfielder Geremi scored the opening goal for Cameroon and after coming on as a substitute in that game against Egypt, Arsenal starlet Alexandre Song played the full 90 minutes yesterday.

Egypt all but guaranteed their place in the quarterfinals with a 3-0 win over Sudan, a game in which the defending champions had to work a little harder than the flattering scoreline might indicate. Second half substitute Mohamed Aboutriaka scored twice in five minutes late in the game to put the match away for the Pharaohs, but Sudan started out like a house on fire and Egypt did well to survive the rush and come out with the victory. Once again, Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky played the entire game for Egypt.

Cameroon will play Sudan to wrap up the group stage and Egypt will take on Zambia, and it doesn’t take a genius to predict that the favorites will most likely win those games. If that holds true, Egypt will win Group C and Cameroon would be the runner-up.

Group C Standings (after two games):

1. Egypt (6 points, +5 goal differential)
2. Cameroon (3 pts, +2 GD)
3. Zambia (3 pts, -1 GD)
4. Sudan (0 pts, -6 GD)

Today’s games could be very interesting as Group D is in action. All four teams in the group are even right now with a point each and to me, this is the most evenly matched group in the tournament, by far. Senegal and Angola will meet although interestingly enough, it was Angola who was one of Africa’s representatives in the last World Cup, not Senegal; and Tunisia will play the hosts of the 2010 World Cup, South Africa.