The Egyptian National Team was handed a boost for their World Cup hopes after the Egyptian Football Association granted Bob Bradleyโs request to play their playoff match against Ghana in Cairo and in front of fans.
The match is set for November 19th and will be the second leg of the competition after the October 15th opener in Ghana.
Following last weekโs draw for the African World Cup playoffs, Bradley requestedย the home leg be played in nationโs capital and that fans be allowed to attend.
โWe would love to play in Cairo,โ Bradley said after the draw. โThat is the dream of the team.โ
MORE: Bob Bradleyโs Egypt draw Ghana in the CAF playoffs
That dream will now be realized as the EFA slated the match to be played in Cairoโs โ30 June Stadiumโ. Itโs been two years since the Pharaohs last played in the capital where they defeated Niger 3-0. That victory, in October 2011, came four months before the infamous Port Said league match that left more thanย 70 fans dead.
Since that match Cairo has come undone through political uproar and violence. The unrest prompted the EFA to schedule the national teamโs matches outside of the capital city, in places like Alexandria and the seaside resort of El Gouna.
Egypt not only held an unbeaten record at those locations but throughout the entire African qualifying process, winning all six of their group stage games. Now, faced with a playoff against one of the best teams on the continent, Bradleyโs squad will return home to the 30,000 capacity seat stadium, which the EFA promises will be full.
During his time in charge of the US Menโs National Team, Bradleyโs squad were knocked out of the 2010 World Cup by Ghana in the last 16 in South Africa.
The first legs of the Confederation of African Footballย World Cup playoffs will take place on October 11th-15th with the second legs taking place from November 15th-19th.ย Below is the entire playoff fixture list:
Ivory Coast vs. Senegal
Ethiopia vs. Nigeria
Tunisia vs. Cameroon
Ghana vs. Egypt
Burkina Faso vs. Algeria
