AFCON 2025 Matchday 2 Highlights: Egypt And South Africa Secure Victories Fixtures For Today

According to Ireporter Online, the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) continued with an action-packed second matchday, as early frontrunners began to assert themselves. The tournament, which commenced on December 21 with hosts Morocco defeating Comoros 2-0, saw three matches on December 22, producing two wins and a draw.

Egypt opened their campaign with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Zimbabwe, sealed by a stoppage-time strike from Mohamed Salah. Zimbabwe stunned the seven-time champions in Agadir when Prince Dube scored in the 20th minute, calmly finishing Emmanuel Jalai’s cross. Egypt responded in the 61st minute through Omar Marmoush, who delivered a powerful strike from the left. Despite missed chances, Egypt’s persistence paid off when Salah showcased his trademark control and composure to net the winner in added time. The result extended Egypt’s unbeaten run to 11 AFCON matches and marked a perfect record against Zimbabwe in the tournament.

South Africa also started positively, overcoming Angola 2-1 in Marrakesh. Oswin Appollis opened the scoring in the 21st minute, only for Angola to equalize before halftime as Show converted a free kick to mark his 50th international cap. After a tense second half, Lyle Foster’s exquisite strike in the 79th minute secured the victory for the Bafana Bafana, setting up a high-stakes encounter with Egypt on Boxing Day.

Earlier, Mali and Zambia played out a dramatic 1-1 draw. Mali initially missed a first-half penalty through El Bilal Touré but took the lead in the 61st minute via Lassine Sinayoko. Zambia salvaged a point in stoppage time when Patson Daka netted a late equalizer.

AFCON 2025 fixtures for December 23 include DR Congo vs Benin Republic at 1:30 p.m., Senegal vs Botswana at 4 p.m., Nigeria vs Tanzania at 6:30 p.m., and Tunisia vs Uganda at 9 p.m., promising another day of competitive football.