Mohammed Salah has built a career on rewriting history books in the span of the last decade or so. The Egypt captain played his role to perfection again on Sunday and scored a goal to snatch a FIFA World Cup match against New Zealand by 3-1. The match, held in Vancouver, is a historic victory for Egypt in the World Cup.
The 34-year-old Salah wasn’t having a great season at Liverpool prior to the World Cup. However, he responded with an impressive vigour to fight on the global stage – registering a goal and two assists in two matches so far.
Salah may have crossed his peak following a nine-year stint with Liverpool, but he still remains the primary threat of Egypt.
In this game, the Egyptian coach, Hossam Hassan, again deployed Salah in a central role behind striker Omar Marmoush in a 4-2-3-1 formation, flanked by Emam Ashour and Mostafa Zico. The coach expressed his satisfaction with Salah’s adaptation to a difficult position.
After a subdued first-half performance, Salah came into his element and took control of the ball. He finished the game with five attempts on Goal, two of which were on target. This performance earned him the man of the match honours in the game.
Egypt’s resurgence in this game came at the 58th minute when ZIco headed in Hany’s cross to score a goal and canceled out New Zealand’s opener.
Exactly nine minutes later, Salah exchanged passes with Zico before sending a curl to the goalpost in a left-footed finish. After that, he turned to the assist role and delivered an outswinging corner that Mahmoud Trezeguet sent to the target. This goal sealed the victory for Egypt.
After the game, Salah said, “We can make history and qualify top of the group, and in the years to come you will remember this as one of our best achievements.”
“We just have to enjoy today, enjoy tomorrow, and then focus on the next game. It feels like we are playing in Egypt, with all the fans wearing red. Everybody is happy and excited. I do not know what to say – it is a great atmosphere.”
In the first game, Egypt managed to hold off Belgium with a 1-1 scoreline. Now, Egypt has moved to the top of the group with four points from two matches. In the next game, they will face second-place Iran in Seattle.
