#CAN2017 Semi-finals — Tactical match-ups
We could have been having a rip-roaring semi-final between Egypt and Tunisia tonight, but the Carthage Eagles picked the worst possible time to be unimpressive, losing to Burkina Faso in the quarter final.
So this is what we have instead.
Not that I have anything against the Stallions, of course. They won in regulation time, after all, and they won by two goals — it would be silly to argue they do not deserve it. Still, this is the nature of tournament football: once out of the group stage, your previous performances cease to count, and it boils down to how you perform game by game.
Anyway, we know what both these teams are about: both play 4–2–3–1 and both defend compactly. Burkina Faso is perhaps the more assertive side in possession when handed the initiative, and so I expect that’s what we will see tonight. Egypt will cede ground, and try to break.
Predictable too is the respective danger men. Mohamed Salah’s battle with Hamza Mendyl in the quarter final was fascinating to watch — Herve Renard used two different approaches in the game, and never looked entirely comfortable with either.
Going the other way too, Salah simply let Mendyl go; while he offers great pace and energy, his game could do with a bit of guile and maturity, Mendyl. He did not always take up optimal positions, and his deliveries were occasionally hurried and imprecise.
This time, it is Yacouba Coulibaly Salah will be facing. He is an odd full-back who always seems to start games shakily, before growing into them. This perhaps suggests he is not presented with a scouting report on his direct opponent, and has to learn on his feet.
Crucially though, Coulibaly does not venture too far forward in possession, so Salah will have to be a lot more clever with his movement than he was, for example, against Mali in the opening game, where he was gravely disappointing.
Going the other way, Egypt will have his hands full with Bertrand Traore. The youngster gave Aymen Abdennour an absolute licking last time out (it is always amusing when a coach makes a harebrained decision and it backfires), but the Pharaohs are deliberate in avoiding defensive one-on-one situations out wide. Instead, the preference is to stay compact and await support from the winger coming back (in this case, Trezeguet), as well as one of the double-pivot preventing a cut infield.
Traore’s ability to stretch that pivot could make the difference, especially is Burkina Faso can take advantage of that space with shots from distance. Alain Traore, anyone?
For their part, Egypt will rely on set-pieces. The Stallions do have a tendency to give them away quite a bit, and could suffer. Cuper’s side has shown inventiveness with routines, and this is the best bet to decide the tie.
