Egypt and Cameroon booked their places in the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations with two hard-fought victories over Angola and Tunisia respectively. The Pharaohs were given the toughest game of their CAN campaign so far by the ambitious Palancas Negras, but Amr Zaki's winning goal saved the day for them. In Tamale, Cameroon needed an extra-time volley from Stephane Mbia to edge 3-2 past Tunisia, who came back from two goals down during the thrilling encounter. Man of the day: Mbia of all people sent Cameroon to the semi-finals with a well-taken brace against Tunisia in Monday's 3-2 win. The defensive midfielder stole the show from Samuel Eto'o, who normally takes the responsibility of finding the net. He opened the scoring with a header, before winning the game for the Indomitable Lions with a neat volley three minutes into extra-time. Mbia, who is only 21, joined Stade Rennes after he graduated from Kadji Sports Academy, which also turned out the likes of Eto'o and Caros Kameni. Goal of the day: Angola's Manucho scored a definite contender for goal the tournament against Egypt. The Manchester United recruit beat one of Africa's top goalkeepers, Essam Al-Hadari, with a blistering 30-yard thunderbolt into the top right corner. Moment of the day: This could win the fair play moment of the competition. Egypt striker Zaki heavily collided with Angola keeper Lama, before the duo unexpectedly embraced each other as if they were teammates.
Cameroon won in extra time Disappointment of the day: Even though he was jubilant after the game, but Mohamed Zidan's face was full of disappointment during Egypt's win over Angola after he was falsely accused of being in a rift with coach Hassan Shehata. What the Papers Said Egypt's Al-Ahram said: ''Egypt on course to keep title'', as the nation's leading newspaper heaped praise upon the team's ''extraordinary defense''. Al-Ahram also stated that Manucho caused us problems more than Ahli's Flavio Amado, and that 'it is time for the Ivory Coast clash'. El-Akhbar stated: ''Egypt through to last four, face Ivory Coast", and also reported that president Hosni Mubarak sent his applauds to the team. After the defeat to Cameroon in Tamale, Tunisia's Assabah stated: ''Goodbye CAN 2008", adding that the team 'could have done better'. However, La Presse reported that 'Tunisia gave in their best CAN 2008 performance, but were eliminated by the lucky Cameroon'. On the other hand, Camfoot praised the winning side: ''Heroic Lions reach semi-finals in the last gasp", as goal hero Mbia was voted man of the match. Cameroon Tribune stated: ''Lions advance after thrilling win".
