Ivory Coast head coach Emerse Faé has played down suggestions his side will focus solely on Mohamed Salah when they face Egypt in the quarter-finals of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, insisting the threat comes from the entire Egyptian team.

The defending champions booked their place in the last eight with an emphatic 3-0 win over Burkina Faso on Tuesday, a result that set up a mouth-watering showdown with the Pharaohs on Saturday, 10 January 2026.

It is a tie rich in history and expectation, with both sides chasing a place in the semi-finals of Africa’s biggest football tournament.

Speaking ahead of the encounter, Faé acknowledged Salah’s status as one of the continent’s biggest stars but warned against building a game plan around a single player.

“Mohamed Salah is a great player, but we will be playing against the Egyptian national team,” Faé said. “Salah will not be playing alone, so we will not focus on him alone. We will focus on the Egyptian team as a whole.”

Ivory Coast arrive in confident mood after their commanding last-16 display, but Faé stressed that his team’s mindset remains unchanged as they continue their title defence in Morocco.

“We don’t look at the opponent who stands in our way,” he added. “We have a goal, and if we want to go to the finish line, we have to be able to face any team.”

Egypt, seven-time champions, are aiming to extend their record by lifting an eighth AFCON title, while Ivory Coast are seeking to retain the trophy and underline their status as one of Africa’s dominant forces.

With star power on both sides and a place in the semi-finals at stake, Saturday’s quarter-final promises intensity, quality and the kind of drama the Africa Cup of Nations is renowned for.