The group stage of the TotalEnergies CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations Egypt 2025 concluded on Friday, 9 May 2025.
The eight nations that secured their places in the quarter-finals are: Nigeria, Senegal, Morocco, Egypt, Ghana, Sierra Leone, DR Congo, and South Africa.
This opening phase of the tournament delivered on all fronts — thrills, tension, and breakout performances — with each match producing new talents and dramatic storylines.
The top individual performers were honoured with Man of the Match awards in recognition of their impact on the field.
Mohamed Abdalla, who scored the only goal in Egypt’s tournament-opening victory over South Africa, was the first player to be awarded the Man of the Match trophy.
Since then, 19 more players have received the honour over the 22 matches played so far.
Only two players — Sierra Leone’s hat-trick hero Momoh Kamara and Zambia’s midfield dynamo Joseph Banda — received the MVP award twice during the highly competitive group stage.
Below is a full list of MVPs whose brilliance lit up the group stage and represent the future of African football:
Group Stage MVPs:
Egypt 1-0 South AfricaMan of the Match: Joseph Banda (Zambia) Zambia 0-0 Sierra LeoneMan of the Match: Joseph Banda (Zambia) South Africa 1-0 TanzaniaMan of the Match: Shakeel April (South Africa) Sierra Leone 4-1 EgyptMan of the Match: Momoh Kamara (hat-trick) Nigeria 1-0 TunisiaMan of the Match: Auwal Ibrahim (Nigeria) Kenya 2-3 MoroccoMan of the Match: Othmane Maamma (Morocco) Senegal 1-1 Central African RepublicMan of the Match: Cheikh Thiam (Senegal) DR Congo 1-1 GhanaMan of the Match: Abdul Hakim Sulemana (Ghana) Tanzania 0-1 Sierra LeoneMan of the Match: Momoh Kamara (Sierra Leone) Egypt 0-0 ZambiaMan of the Match: Ahmed Abdin (Egypt) Tunisia 3-1 KenyaMan of the Match: Nacim Dandani (Tunisia) Morocco 0-0 NigeriaMan of the Match: Daniel Bameyi (Nigeria) Central African Republic 1-3 DR CongoMan of the Match: Noah Makanza (DR Congo) Ghana 1-0 SenegalMan of the Match: Emmanuel Mensah (Ghana) Zambia 1-0 TanzaniaMan of the Match: Joseph Banda (Zambia) Sierra Leone 1-4 South AfricaMan of the Match: Tylon Smith (South Africa) Nigeria 2-2 KenyaMan of the Match: Injehu Wangaya (Kenya) Tunisia 1-3 MoroccoMan of the Match: Ayman Arguigue (Morocco) Senegal 2-0 DR CongoMan of the Match: Ibrahima Dieng (Senegal) Central African Republic 0-1 GhanaMan of the Match: Abdul Aziz Issah (Ghana) Tanzania 0-1 EgyptMan of the Match: Abdelmonem Tamer (Egypt) South Africa 1-1 ZambiaMan of the Match: Lazola Maku (South A frica)
