After three failed chances since 1934, Egypt finally secured a win at the World Cup late Sunday night in Vancouver.
Egypt beat New Zealand 3–1 in Group G action, which gives Egypt a shot at making the knockout round for the second time. The Egyptians first made the World Cup in 1934, followed by appearances in 1990 and 2018.
Egypt played in the knockout round of 1934, as the tournament began with a Round of 16 that year, and lost 4–2 to Hungary. The Egyptians went 0–2–1 during the Group Stage in 1990 and 0–3 for group play in 2018.
“I don’t know how to express it. It is an incredible achievement for all the players and the coaching staff,” Egypt star Mohamed Salah told reporters afterward. “We have a chance to qualify for the next round as group winners. As the years pass, maybe the Egyptian people will remember this as the greatest achievement in our history.”
On Sunday, Egypt didn’t look like the No. 28-ranked team in the world on the way to a historic win. New Zealand grabbed the lead with a goal by Finn Surman in the 15th minute of the game.
Egypt, also known as the Pharaohs, penetrated New Zealand’s defense in the second half with three unanswered goals. Mostafa Zico got things going with a goal in the 58th minute, Salah scored in the 67th, and Mahmoud Ahmed Ibrahim Hassan, commonly known as Trézéguet, added the third in the 82nd minute.
“It’s a great achievement for all the players,” Salah said. “It’s a great win. It’s a great vibe. The next game is very important.”
Egypt grabbed the Group G lead with a 1–0–1 record with four points in the standings. The Egyptians opened with a 1–1 tie against Belgium. A win against Iran (0–2–0) on Friday would lock up the Group G crown.
First, the Pharaohs had to right the ship against New Zealand after a lackluster first half. New Zealand had six shots in the first half, and four came inside the penalty area. Egypt had six shots and only two in the penalty area.
“At half-time I told the players we were not going back out on to the pitch unless we were determined to win and to draw confidence from the pride we feel from that support,” Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan told reporters afterward.
“To the Egyptian football community, we needed time to build confidence, to capitalize on our strengths and reflect on our journey to qualification, as well as the hard work of previous generations who tried to create these opportunities.”
Egypt controlled possession 50 percent of the time, New Zealand for 39 percent, and 11 percent was contested. Egypt outshot New Zealand 19–11 for the match, and the Pharaohs had seven on-target shots and 12 inside the penalty area.
Salah, a Premier League star, put the Egyptians ahead to stay 2–1, which had the crowd in Vancouver roaring. The 34-year-old star became the second-leading scorer in Egyptian history for all international competition.
Salah has 68 goals, and his coach, Hassan, had 69 as a player between 1958 and 2006. Hassan more or less expects that record to be broken during the tournament.
“Salah worked hard on the pitch, and this is something you should know,” Hassan said. “I am maybe the first coach to let him play in a position that matches his danger, that matches his capabilities and qualities. We worked on so many things, and I am sure we are going to see more from him.”
As for New Zealand (0–1–1), a critical match with Belgium (0–0–2) awaits on Friday, with fading knockout round hopes on the line. New Zealand head coach Darren Bazeley lamented his team’s lost opportunity on Sunday in Vancouver.
“It’s frustrating,” Bazeley told reporters. “We played so well in the first half. We scored a great goal, created lots of chances, felt like we were dominating possession a lot of the time in the first half, and we were comfortable. We weren’t really getting hurt.
“And we talked well at half-time, looked at some things we can do a little bit better. Went out second half, and we just weren’t able to recreate the tempo and quality that we showed in the first half.”