Mohamed Salah inspires Egypt to historic World Cup win over New Zealand
Brilliant second-half display means the team move top of Group G ahead of Iran and Belgium, boosting their hopes of reaching knockout stage
Mohamed Salah inspired Egypt to their first World Cup win as they came from a goal down to beat New Zealand 3-1 with a brilliant second-half display on Sunday, moving top of Group G and boosting their hopes of reaching the knockout stage.
After a relatively quiet first half that saw them go in behind at the break, Egypt and Salah turned up the heat in the second half as the 34-year-old winger showed he is still capable of conjuring magic from his boots.
“It’s a great achievement for all the players. It’s a great win. It’s a great vibe. The next game is very important,” Salah said as he took the plaudits among his teammates.
Egypt, who drew 1-1 with Belgium in their opener, moved top of the group with four points from two matches. The All Whites, held 2-2 by Iran in their opener, are bottom with one point. Belgium and the Iranians have two points after their 0-0 draw.
New Zealand’s first-half game plan was as simple as it was effective, kicking long when they needed to and keeping possession when they could, and defender Finn Surman broke the deadlock from a corner, losing marker Ahmed Fatouh before steering a powerful header into the net.
Though Callum McCowatt had a glancing header tipped over the bar early on for New Zealand, Egypt piled on the pressure after the break and they levelled through Mostafa Zico, who headed home Mohamed Hany’s cross from the right in the 58th minute.