Mohamed Salah, in prolific form for Liverpool this season, will lead Egypt against bogey team Nigeria in a blockbuster Group D opener at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
Salah leads all scorers in the Premier League this season with 16 goals, including one in the 2-2 draw with Chelsea on Sunday, his last match before leaving for west Africa.
The 27-year-old was an unused substitute in three Premier League matches during December before coming off the bench for a cameo appearance against Brentford. German Gernot Rohr was sacked after the Super Eagles scraped into the final round of 2022 World Cup qualifying and Augustine Eguavoen, who played for Nigeria at the 1994 World Cup, has been placed in temporary charge.
Gritty fighters in qualifiers, the west Africans have struggled at the higher level of the finals, securing just one point from each previous appearance.