Watch: Egypt outlasts Burkina Faso in penalties, reaches Africa Cup of Nations final
Egypt is through to the Africa Cup of Nations final after outlasting Burkina Faso 4-3 in a riveting penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw.
Amr Wada put Egypt ahead with its fifth kick and 44-year-old Essam El Hadary saved Bertrand Traore's decider, sending Egypt through to the final, where it will play either Cameroon or Ghana on Sunday.
Herve Koffi denied Abdalla El Said with a fantastic save to top the opening kick of the penalty round off the bar to seemingly set the tone for Burkina Faso.
Alain Traore, Banou Diawara, Steeve Yago made their kicks for Burkina Faso, but were answered by Ramadan Sobhi, Ahmed Hegazy and Mohamed Salah. Koffi then stepped up to take the fourth for Burkina Faso, only to be denied by El Hadary, making it 3-3 through four rounds and setting the stage for the dramatic conclusion.
It took a pair of fantastic goals to send the semifinal to extra time.
Salah put Egypt on the cusp of reaching the final with his second-half volley breaking a deadlock in Gabon, only for Aristide Bance to answer soon after with a brilliant goal of his own.
Salah ripped a left-footed shot into the far netting after latching onto a layoff from Kahraba in the 66th minute. The goal was his second of the competition, the other coming in a 1-0 win over Ghana in the group stage.
The lead was short-lived, though. Bance finished off a phenomenal sequence–which included two back-heel passes–with a chest-trap and quick-volley finish in the 73rd minute
Burkina Faso will settle for the third-place game against the Cameroon-Ghana loser.
