The coach also apologised to fans who were expecting a victory over Mauritania on Saturday.

"My players did their best to win but there was a very good team in the face," said Vasiljevic. "We are sorry for all the Angolans who were expecting a win. We didn't achieve our objective."

Mali could have won the group if they had beaten Tunisia on Friday but manager Mohamed Magassouba expressed his satisfaction at his side's point.

"We would have felt better if we won but a draw is not a bad result," the coach told the media in Egypt.

Mali are currently top of the group on four points, with Tunisia and Angola on two points, while rock bottom Mauritania have picked up just one point so far.

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