Reigning U23 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) champions Egypt got their quest of qualifying for the 2023 edition of the continental tourney off to the perfect start as they defeated Zambia 2-0 in the first leg of their final qualifying match played on Wednesday night.In the encounter staged in Cairo, the Young Pharaohs, who had reached the third and final round of the 2023 U-23 AFCON qualifiers after beating Eswatini 1-0 on aggregate in the second round, put themselves in the driving seat of the two-legged tie courtesy of second half goals from Ibrahim Adel and Abdelrahman Atef.The return leg of the clash will take place on Saturday in Ndola’s Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in what promises to be an action-packed north versus south encounter.📹 The moment Ibrahim Adel hands Egypt the advantage against Zambia in U23 AFCON qualifiers 🎯 🔥 pic.twitter.com/AJi76K8pVL— KingFut.com (@King_Fut) March 22, 2023 In another qualifier, Senegal got the bragging rights in their West African derby against Mali as they recorded a comfortable 3-1 victory over their opponents in Dakar.Goals from Lamine Camara, Ibrahima Drame and a second half penalty from Abdallah Sima got the job done for the Young Lions of Teranga as Diarra’s goal only proved to be a consolation for Mali who have all the work to do in the second leg to be played in Bamako should they seek to cause an unlikely upset.First leg U23 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers:FT: 🇳🇬 Nigeria 0-0 🇬🇳 GuineaFT: 🇪🇬 Egypt 2-0 🇿🇲 ZambiaFT: 🇳🇪 Niger 0-0 🇸🇩 Sudan FT: 🇸🇳 Senegal 3-1 🇲🇱 Mali The winners advance to the U23 AFCON in Morocco – which also serves as the CAF Olympics qualifiers. #AFCON2023Q pic.twitter.com/b8yXjTnZDz— Olt Sports (@oltsport_) March 23, 2023 In the other matches played Guinea’s U-23 team held 10-man Nigeria U23 team to a goalless draw at the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja.Visiting Sudan also held Niger to a goalless draw in a match played at the St. General Senyi Kountche Stadium in Niamey.##NAJAVA_MECA_7118248##On Thursday, two-time bronze medalists, South Africa face Congo who are aiming to secure a historic berth into the competition. The two sides meet at the Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto before concluding the two-legged affair on Monday in Brazzaville.Friday evening will see the 2015 runners-up Algeria welcome Ghana to the Stade 19 Mai Stadium in Annaba. The West Africans are determined to make a mark in this competition, having finished fourth in the 2019 edition.Shock as in form Omala among five dropped for Harambee Stars friendly against IranThey will square off again in the second leg on Tuesday, at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in Kumasi.Morocco is hosting the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations, from which the top three teams qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics, the fourth-place team plays a play-off with its Asian counterpart for the fourth qualifying card for the Olympics.Seychelles’ former African U20 bronze medalist relocates to Kenya to tap into Omanyala’s brilliance
