Substitute Mohamed Abou-Treika scored twice to inspire Egypt to a 3-0 victory over Sudan on Saturday and put them on the brink of the quarter-finals of the African Cup of Nations. Hosni Abd-Rabou broke the deadlock in the first period before Abou-Treika came off the bench to seal the victory. He doubled the lead in the 78th minute after being set up by Amr Zaki before the Ahli playmaker added the third with an ice-cool finish seven minutes from time. Despite collecting six points from two games, Egypt still need a point to reach the last eight as Cameroon thumped Zambia 5-1 earlier on the same day. The defending champions top Group C, three points ahead of Cameroon and Zambia, whom they play in the last group match. Sluggish Start Egypt looked far from the impressing side that mauled Cameroon 4-2 in the group opener. Sudan strikers forced a couple of saves from Essam Al-Hadari in the first few minutes but it was Egypt who had the first scoring chance. Mohamed Zidan, Egypt's new hero with his two-goal performance against Cameroon, broke free in the 10th minute but he was caught by defenders before shooting. The Sudanese were dominant in the midfield and left holding midfielders Mohamed Shawky and Abd-Rabou chasing shadows. But Abd-Rabou robbed the ball on the edge of the area before being downed inside the box by keeper El-Moez Mahjoub. The Ismaili midfielder sent the ball home from the spot but referee Coffi Codja ordered a replay.
Abd-Rabou netted his third goal And as he did against Cameroon, Abd-Rabou stepped up again, sending the keeper the wrong way and opening the scoring in the 29th minute. It was Abd-Rabou's third goal of the tournament, competing with Samuel Eto'o and Soufiane Alloudi, who have the same tally, for the top scorer title. Treika Magic Manager Hassan Shehata threw veteran midfielders Abou-Treika and Ahmed Hassan into the fray in the 57th minute. They came on for Zidan and Mahmoud Fathallah, who picked up a second yellow card and will miss Zambia match. Hassan, who usually plays various midfield roles with Egypt and Anderlecht, was deployed as a right-back while Abou-Treika took his favorite playmaking role. Abou-Treika pulled the strings in the midfield and inspired Egypt's attempts for their second goal. In the 79th minute, Abou-Treika's silky pass found Zaki behind the Sudanese defense but the Zamalek striker couldn't find a shooting angle and opted to square to the Anticipating Abou-Treika. The Ahli star rounded a challenger before slotting home a wonderful goal. He was cautioned for lifting his jersey to reveal another shirt with a banner reading "Sympathize with Gaza." Abou-Treika produced another piece of magic four minutes later when he ghosted behind the back for from the left side of the area. Despite being locked in a tight angle, he looked towards the far post and appeared as if he would cross the ball and the trick was enough to bamboozle Mahjoub, who left the near angle unguarded only for "the magician" to burry home.
