Egypt
Egypt won the AFCON the last time the competition was held at home in 2006, marking the start of three consecutive wins because they were the most successful party on the continent.
There have been four separate winners since then, but Javier Aguirre's team has been supported to add to their goals this time, helped by a lucrative group.
After facing Zimbabwe in their opening match on Friday - the team which is outside the top 100 in the latest FIFA ranking - Egypt faces Congo and Uganda, ranking 90th and 80th respectively.
Nine points from nine will be targeted and in the knockout round the people of Aguirre will be thoroughly tested.
Pharaoh experienced a disappointing World Cup campaign in Russia last year, not helped by male star Salah who was far from full fitness towards the tournament.
Having been bottom of the weak group with zero points from their three matches, a decision was made to replace the manager.
Aguirre made Egypt entertaining to watch, concluded with 20 goals scored in their last eight matches. Such a form of goal assessment must stand on the side of the most successful competition instead.
With a good blend of experience and youth in their ranks, the Pharaohs have the ability to return to their homeland once again.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe headed to the tournament behind consecutive draws against Tanzania and fellow Nigerian finalists who, like Egypt, were among favorites.
The Warriors take four points from Congo in qualifying, but their record in the final itself is far from great.
They have reached the right competition three times, were eliminated in the group stage in 2004, 2006 and 2017. In their latest participation two years ago, Zimbabwe took points from Algeria in their opening match and then lost to Senegal and Tunisia.
Avoiding the bottom position will be the first target this time and, in the group with a low ranking team, Sunday Chidzambwa will not rule out bookings in the knockout round.
Knowledge Musona Striker and midfielder Marvelous Nakamba, who later appeared in the Champions League for Club Brugge, are both threats and the Warriors have the ability to cause disappointment.
Chidzambwa said he was pleased with his team's appearance in their pre-tournament friendly match, preparing them well for the curtain-up match.
"I am very proud of my sons because they played my instructions," he told reporters. "This shows that we will go to the Africa Cup of Nations with high hopes and hopes."
To prevent Nigeria from leaving one and a half weeks ago, Zimbabwe showed they could maintain a tight game - something they had to use well on Friday.
PREDICTION
There will be a lot of hope in the host country Egypt when they start the tournament with a match against Zimbabwe who are outsiders in Group A. Mo Salah's form and sharpness will be very important for Egypt's chances of going ahead and he shows his importance to the team by rising from the bench to prepare two goals in their friendly victory against Guinea. It is unlikely that the Liverpool star will play full, but his own presence will provide a big boost for the team. Zimbabwe has some decent players and may have the chance to win third place in the group, but they are unlikely to beat Egypt in the opening match of the tournament.
Reasons for Egypt vs Zimbabwe Betting
Egypt are the favorites of the band to claim the African Nations Cup title in their own backyard this year, but Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria and Ivory Coast all tend to challenge Pharaoh to crown them. Zimbabwe is one of the many outsiders ranked for this year's title but has a psome-quality player who can cause Egypt some problems in Friday's opening match.
Marwan Mohsen scored after eleven minutes to give Egypt the edge in their last warm-up match against Guinea, and the goal proved enough to separate the two countries at the midpoint. Guinea equalized shortly after an hour through Kaba, but Egypt restored their one-goal lead through Ahmed Ali thirteen minutes from time and Omar Gaber sealed a 3-1 victory with the final goal of the match in eighty-six minutes. Zimbabwe rested many players who were expected to face Egypt on Friday when they faced Tanzania in their last friendly match before the start of the African Cup, in which Knox Mutizwa scored to help his team draw 1-1.
The head to head record between these two countries and the two teams forming and appearing in the last six international matches, shows that Egypt will win and under 2.5 goals will be printed in the process. Egypt has won each of their previous four meetings with Zimbabwe. The hosts and tournament favorites have won four of their last six international matches, while Zimbabwe have only won one of their last four international matches, a penalty shootout against Lesotho. Under 2.5 goals have been scored in four of Egypt and five of Zimbabwe's last six matches, which is why we supported a narrow 1-0 victory for Egypt on Friday.
Mohamed Salah will come to the tournament behind another successful season with Liverpool and is the source of Egypt's main goal after scoring 39 in 63 appearances for his country. Anderlecht striker Knowledge Musona has a good international record of 22 goals in 37 caps and along with the Khama Billiat midfielder can cause Egypt's defense some problems on Friday. We are confident that Egypt will win and that under 2.5 goals will be scored, and have predicted a final score of 1-0 for the hosts. Egypt have won each of their four matches against Zimbabwe, but both teams are heading for the match after seeing most of the recent international matches they have produced under 2.5 goals. There is a lot of pressure on the hosts and we have seen them, even with Salah ahead, fail to produce their best form during the early stages of the African Cup which is another reason why we only expect a narrow victory.
Egypt vs Zimbabwe Head to head (h2h)
Egypt has faced Zimbabwe on eight occasions.
The last meeting between Egypt and Zimbabwe ended 4-2 for Egyptian interests.
Zimbabwe has made it to the top against Egypt only once.Two of the eight meetings between the teams ended in a draw.
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