Temi: AFCON 2021, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Mohamed Salah, Eric Bailly
The Manchester United defender missed his spot-kick to send the Elephant packing out of the tournament.

Ivory Coast were dealt a blow in their quest for a third Africa Cup of Nations title after Eric Bailly's missed spot-kick sent them packing out of the tournament. The Elephants suffered a disappointing 5-4 defeat in the shoot-out against Egypt on Wednesday, with Mohamed Salah scoring the decider.

Bailly passed a late fitness test after a head injury forced him out of the group decider against Algeria but was lined up to feature against Egypt wearing a protective head guard. Up until his mishap in the shootouts, the Manchester United was among the game's standout performers, consistently putting his body on the line to deny the Pharaohs any chance to have a sniff at goal.

Both teams failed to score during the 120 minutes of the last-16 match, resulting in a draw after extra time. In-between, Egypt were forced to replace their first choice goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy with Mohamed Abo Gabal after the latter picked up a groin injury. The game went to a shoot-out and with the score tied at 2-2, Eric Bailly saw his unconventional take being saved by the substitute shot-stopper.

With all the subsequent takers finding the back of the net, Mohamed Salah fired in the game-winner to secure a quarter-final spot for Egypt. The Pharaohs are now slated to take on Morocco in the last eight on January 30.