Mohamed Salah has been stepping up his preparations for this summer's African Cup of Nations after cutting short his summer break to link up with the Egyptian national team.

Players refused to train on the eve of the game and are demanding to be paid their allowances for the tournament, along with match fees still owed to them from a competition last month.

DR CONGO 0-2 UGANDA: Headers from Patrick Kaddu and Emmanuel Okwi gave Uganda a 2-0 victory against DR Congo in their opening group game at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Francois Kamano struck from the spot after Anicet Andrianantenaina and Carolus Andriamatsinoro goals early in the second half had put the debutants ahead.

Clarence Seedorf insists his Cameroon side are fully focused as they prepare to begin the defence of their Africa Cup of Nations title.

Mali opened their Africa Cup of Nations campaign with a resounding 4-1 triumph over Mauritania at the Suez Stadium.

Sadio Mane has admitted he would swap the Champions League win with Liverpool to claim AFCON glory with his beloved Senegal. 

Youcef Belaili fired Algeria into the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations with the only goal of a bad-tempered 1-0 victory over Senegal in Cairo in the Group C clash.

Ahmed Elmohamady and Mohamed Salah fired Egypt into the last-16 of the Africa Cup of Nations with a goal each in a 2-0 win against DR Congo in Cairo on Wednesday.

Bafana Bafana boss Stuart Baxter had warned his side ahead of the match not to underestimate Namibia and they did indeed prove tough opposition until Zungu's header won the game.

Defending champion Cameroon and Ghana drew 0-0 at the African Cup of Nations to leave their group wide open with one round of games to play. It was the second scoreless game of the day.

BURUNDI 0-2 GUINEA: Guinea face an anxious wait to see if they have clinched a place in the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations following a 2-0 win over 10-man Burundi.

Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita was an unused substitute in Guinea's victory over Burundi on Sunday in Egypt after picking up a thigh injury in a 1-0 loss to Nigeria last Wednesday.

Christian Atsu has been ruled out of the rest of the Africa Cup of Nations with a hamstring tear, officials said on Tuesday.

Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita's chances of rejoining his Guinea team-mates for any potential further Africa Cup of Nations involvement look slim.

Riyad Mahrez scored a wonderful goal as Algeria underlined their status as one of the favourites for the Africa Cup of Nations with a 3-0 win over Guinea which booked their place in the quarter-finals.

Yannick Bolasie missed from the spot as Africa Cup of Nations debutants Madagascar beat DR Congo in a dramatic penalty shootout to reach the quarter-finals.

Ferjani Sassi struck the winning spot-kick as Tunisia beat Ghana 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out to secure their place in the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals.

Arsenal forward Alex Iwobi believes Africa Cup of Nations semi-finalists Nigeria are standing on the brink of a golden future.

The Dutch legend has been confirmed as the club's new head of La Masia academy after he was sacked as Cameroon assistant manager after a poor AFCON campaign.

Ivory Coast international Wilfried Bony, who cost Manchester City £28million as recently as 2015, spent the latter half of last season on loan from Swansea at Al-Arabi in Qatar.

 Wilfried Bony has revealed he is close to moving abroad after leaving Swansea this summer - and is training with League Two Newport County to keep his fitness up.

'It's the Nicolas Pepe show in north London,' came the commentator's scream as he fired in his second free-kick of the night. 16 miles south, another Ivorian winger will have been watching with interest.

Didier Drogba has backed Sadio Mane to be a front-runner for the Ballon d'Or and hopes the Senegalese winger can become only the second African to win the award - after George Weah in 1995.

The tournament was moved to the summer months following a decision by their executive committee in 2017. However, a decision has been made to reverse that call on Wednesday.

Liverpool are set to lose Mo Salah for the start of next season after Egypt bosses said they are confident he will commit to playing in the Tokyo Olympics.

Liverpool are facing up to the prospect of potentially being without star man Mohamed Salah for four months next season, if the rescheduled Tokyo Olympic games move to a spring slot.

Ghana were on the verge of becoming the first African team to reach a World Cup semi-final when they were awarded a penalty in added time of extra time after a Luis Suarez's handball.

Headingley will host the third Ashes Test as England aim to draw level with Australia in Yorkshire, starting on Thursday. Sportsmail's DAVID LLOYD has everything you need to know.

BUMBLE AT THE TEST: Josh Hazlewood has put Australia in complete control of the fourth Ashes Test after grabbing three quick wickets late on during the third day at Old Trafford.

After years of playing and commentating, David Lloyd knows a thing or two about how to enjoy the perfect day out at the cricket.

BUMBLE AT THE TEST: That was a sobering start for England's new era. It will be alarming for the management, and for English coaches, that their batsmen are technically inferior to New Zealand's.

Marcus Rashford has won the Premier League Player of the Month award for his superb performances in January. The Manchester United striker has been rejuvenated under boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The England international went on a downward spiral after the 2018 World Cup but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer looked to have rejuvenated his career after replacing Jose Mourinho as United boss.

Roma are considering a summer move for Alexis Sanchez as Manchester United look to offload the Chilean winger at the end of the season, according to Sky Sports.

Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku declared that he has been 'a man on a mission' ever since Belgium's third-placed finish at the 2018 World Cup.

All games for the under-23 competitions and below have been terminated for the rest of the season, with a means of determining final standings still to be announced.

The Daily Mirror claim Paul Pogba has told Manchester United he wishes to join Real Madrid, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is said to have plans to make him part of the club's future midfield.

United are preparing for a return to Carrington in the coming weeks with the Premier League's restart in the offing, but for now the Red Devils stars are still having to keep themselves ticking over in their homes.

Dimitar Berbatov believes Harry Kane should follow in his footsteps and swap Tottenham for Manchester United this summer for the good of his career. The Bulgarian made the same move back in 2008.

Paul Pogba has struggled to settle at United since his £89million return from Juventus in 2016 and has been been linked with moves to Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain as well as a Juve return.

The Serie A club are willing to entertain offers for the 28-year-old Senegal centre back when the transfer window finally opens this summer with Liverpool reportedly leading the chase.

Rojo, currently on loan at Argentine club Estudiantes, was filmed smoking and playing cards with friends by his brother Franco, who then uploaded the clip into his Instagram account.

David Beckham was sent off in the second-half of England's last 16 game with Argentina after kicking out at Diego Simeone. The Three Lions would go on to be knocked out by their rivals on penalties.

Former Manchester United defender Jaap Stam has been out of a job since resigning as boss of Eredivisie side Feyenoord in October after less than five months in charge of the club.

Rojo, who is on loan at Estudiantes until the end of the season, was seen playing poker and smoking with friends in a video posted on social media and later deleted by his brother Franco.

Jesse Lingard is at a crossroads in his career. He is out of favour at his boyhood club, Manchester United. But these players show that leaving Old Trafford might not be the best option...

The French defender became a firm favourite at United, spending eight-and-a-half seasons at Old Trafford after joining the club from Monaco in January 2006. But he wasn't always in favour.

Lifting the Premier League trophy was a regular occurrence during the striker's six years at Old Trafford but United have gone seven years and counting since last being champions of England.

The striker burst on to the European stage this season after his impressive form for Red Bull Salzburg earned him a £17million transfer to Borussia Dortmund in January.