Egypt host the 2019 African Cup of Nations and the hosts are firm favourites to be crowned champions of Africa once again.

Cameroon come into the tournament as defending champions, but they are not seen as realistic contenders – indeed it is the The Pharaohs, led by Liverpool superstar Mo Salah, who are seen as the team to beat.

This is the first major tournament for Egypt’s head coach – Mexican Javier Aguirre, and he is knows the pressure is on.

“I have a lot of responsibility — the head coach of this big project. Also, in Egypt football is almost a religion. Around 100 million people here, they all love the game. It’s incredible. But I prefer it this way, really. I said to my wife, ‘I think it’s my time’. I can handle this pressure.

“All the media here and in the streets, it’s kind of an order: ‘You have to win’. Second-place? Not an option.”

BoyleSports provide the odds throughout the preview and we spoke with Lawrence Lyons for their assessment before the tournament gets underway.

“This is a really tight market and you could throw a handkerchief over the top four in the betting,” he said.

“Egypt are just ahead at 4/1 and maybe the Mo Salah factor is giving them the edge with punters, as well as the advantage of playing on home turf.

“Ghana and Senegal are being well-supported too but there’s plenty of opportunity for one side to grab hold of the outright market with a good opening performance.”

We now run through every team with their odds, star men, one to watch and summary from our Football Insider Graeme Bailey.

GROUP A

EGYPT
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 4/1
Coach: Javier Aguirre
Star Player: Mo Salah
One to watch: Trezeguet
Graeme’s view: A very good squad with a world-class edge in the shape of Salah – be very hard to beat on home soil

DR CONGO
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 16/1
Coach: Florent Ibenge
Star Player: Yannick Bolasie
One to watch: Britt Assombalonga
Graeme’s view: DR Congo have some real quality in the squad, and they have a very good chance of progression. Yannick Bolasie has potential to be a star here

UGANDA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 80/1
Coach: Sebastien Desabre
Star Player: Ronald Mukiibi
One to watch: Farouk Miya
Graeme’s view: Decent experience, but they seem to lack in-depth quality to make a big impact

ZIMBABWE 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 100/1
Coach: Sunday Chidzambwa
Star Player: Marvelous Nakamba
One to watch: Teenage Hadebe
Graeme’s view: An interesting squad, and they could cause a shock by progressing as they do have some good players

GROUP B

NIGERIA 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 13/2
Coach: Gernot Rohr
Star Player: John Obi-Mikel
One to watch: Henry Onyekuru
Graeme’s view: One of the best squads in the competition, should be challenging for the title – little doubt

GUINEA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 25/1
Coach: Paul Put
Star Player: Naby Keita
One to watch: Amadou Diawara
Graeme’s view: Interesting squad, some strength and if perform to their best could be a dark horse

MADAGASCAR
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 150/1
Coach: Nicolas Dupuis
Star Player: Jeremy Morel
One to watch: Rayan Raveloson
Graeme’s view: The debutants have an inexperienced squad, and this will be a big learning experience for them

BURUNDI 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 150/1
Coach: Olivier Niyungeko
Star Player: Saido Berahino
One to watch: Christophe Nduwarugira
Graeme’s view: Burundi are another who have done well to qualify, and they will need some of the European-based players to step up if they want to make any sort of impact

GROUP C

SENEGAL
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 6/1
Coach: Aliou Cisse
Star Player: Sadio Mane
One to watch: Ismaila Sarr
Graeme’s view: Arguably the best squad in the competition, they have quality throughout – big names players with plenty of experience – they would be my choice to win

ALGERIA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 12/1
Coach: Djamel Belmadi
Star Player: Riyad Mahrez
One to watch: Adam Ounas
Graeme’s view: A good looking squad, and in Mahrez they have one of the best players in Egypt and he could take them a long way for sure

KENYA 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 100/1
Coach: Sebastien Migne
Star Player: Victor Wanyama
One to watch: Eric Ouma
Graeme’s view: An interesting Kenya squad, but very reliant on Wanyama to perform – unlikely to see the knockout stages

TANZANIA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 200/1
Coach: Emmanuel Amunike
Star Player: Mbwana Samatta
One to watch: Yahya Zayd
Graeme’s view: One of the weaker squads in the competition, very much a learning experience for Tanzania

GROUP D

MOROCCO
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 10/1
Coach: Herve Renard
Star Player: Younes Belhanda
One to watch: Noussair Mazraoui
Graeme’s view: A really solid squad, some very good players and they have a real chance of progressing – but not sure they have a title winning team

IVORY COAST 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 8/1
Coach: Ibrahim Kamara
Star Player: Wilfried Zaha
One to watch: Nicolas Pepe
Graeme’s view: Some real talent on show for Ivory Coast, especially going forward – if they click they could be real contenders here.

SOUTH AFRICA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 25/1
Coach: Stuart Baxter
Star Player: Dean Furman
One to watch: Rivaldo Coetzee
Graeme’s view: Not a great South African squad, they lack any real quality and will struggle in this strong group

NAMIBIA 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 200/1
Coach: Ricardo Mannettie
Star Player: Benson Shilongo
One to watch: Ryan Nyambe
Graeme’s view: Namibia have done well to qualify and they won’t have enough to get through

GROUP E

TUNISIA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 14/1
Coach: Alain Giresse
Star Player: Wahbi Khazri
One to watch:Marc Lamti
Graeme’s view: A decent squad with some experience but they won’t trouble the big guns further in the tournament

MALI
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 14/1
Coach: Mohamed Magassouba
Star Player: Moussa Marega
One to watch: Moussa Djenepo
Graeme’s view: Mali look the strongest team in this group, some very good players with potential – an interesting side to keep an eye on

MAURITANIA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 200/1
Coach: Corentin Martins
Star Player: Sally Sarr
One to watch: Hacen El Ide
Graeme’s view: A strong French influence coming from the coach, not a bad squad and could cause some problems

ANGOLA
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 66/1
Coach:  Srdjan Vasiljevic
Star Player: Bastos
One to watch: Gelson Dala
Graeme’s view: A largely domestic based squad, but they do have some European based quality and won’t be pushovers

GROUP F

CAMEROON
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 14/1
Coach: Clarence Seedorf
Star Player: Clinton N’Jie
One to watch: Wilfrid Kaptoum
Graeme’s view: The defending champions, but this squad is in rebuild mode and they are miles away from being the powerhouses they once were

GHANA 
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 6/1
Coach: James Kwesi Appiah
Star Player: Thomas Partey
One to watch: Joseph Aidoo
Graeme’s view: Ghana look strong, and I think they can top this group, but it looks a big ask for them to compete for the title

BENIN
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 80/1
Coach: Michel Dussuyer
Star Player: Steve Mounie
One to watch: Olivier Verdon
Graeme’s view: A decent squad and they could be a stubborn opponent, don’t write them off

GUINEA-BISSAU
Tournament odds from BoyleSports – 200/1
Coach: Baciro Cande
Star Player: Pele
One to watch: Moreto Cassama
Graeme’s view: A strong European flavour – might be tougher than some think