Egypt wait on Mido for final push

Egypt are hoping that national idol Mido can fire the hosts into the African Nations Cup final when they take on Senegal today.

Laid low by a groin strain suffered in their win over Ivory Coast more than a week ago, the Tottenham Hotspur striker is expected to play some part at Cairo's International Stadium.

Coach Hassan Shehata said Mido had recovered from his injury but stopped short of guaranteeing him a start today.

Mido would line up with strike partner Emad Moteab, relegating 39-year-old warhorse Hossam Hassan to the bench - despite his goal in their 4-1 quarter-final win over DR Congo.

As impressive as Egypt can be going forward, particularly when roared on by 80,000 fans, their defence has a tendency to panic even when light pressure is applied.

Senegal can certainly provide that, as Abdoulaye Sarr's men showed when they came from behind to beat Guinea 3-2 in the quarter-finals without El Hadji Diouf, who should be fit for today.

Diouf's strike partner Henri Camara has pace while playmaker Diomansy Kamara has been impressive all tournament.

Though they had to battle against the Guineans, having already lost two of their three group games, Sarr is convinced his team are riding an upward curve.

"We're back to our usual form," he said. "Game by game, as our fitness levels go up, we can only get better."

Up in Alexandria, Nigeria's semi-final against Ivory Coast is likely to be a tough battle of attrition.

Further south, with two strong attacks taking on two suspect defences, Cairo could be the place to be for goals.