World Cup 2018: Saudi Arabia vs Egypt team news, prediction and preview in Group A dead rubber
Juan Antonio Pizzi's side and the Egyptians will only be playing for pride after crashing out of the competition
A DEAD rubber, but one that should see World Cup history made.
Defeats to Russia and Uruguay mean that these two grab home regardless of whether they can grab a pride-boosting win in Volgograd.
Egypt keeper Essam El-Hadary is set for a run-out at the age of 45 and would make history by taking former Colombia stopper Faryd Mondragon’s crown and becoming the oldest man to ever play at a World Cup finals.
The nation expects
Saudi Arabia are yet to score at the tournament, so finding the back of the net would be a good start.
They’re looking for their first World Cup win since shocking Belgium in the second of two group-stage wins at USA’94.
It will be all about finding a win for Hector Cuper’s Egypt. They are chasing a first ever World Cup victory in their seventh finals match.
Key battles/star men
Villarreal winger Salem Al-Dawsari looks most likely to provide inspiration for the Saudis in attack.
But can their defence hold up against one of the most dangerous players at the tournament?
That man Mo Salah has a goal to his name, but looks short on confidence after being rushed back from a shoulder injury.
How Salah goes will define both teams’ hopes of dodging Group A’s wooden spoon.
Weakest links
Defence… for both sides. They’ve shipped ten between them.
In what neutrals might consider the least enticing game of the tournament, nobody wants these teams to sort their backlines out in time for their final match.
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Likely line-ups and team news
Defenders Mansoor Al-Harbi and Ali Al-Bulaihi, Omar Hawsawi are injury doubts but the latter two are expected to be fit and start for boss Juan Antonio Pizzi.
Saudi Arabia (4-2-3-1): Al-Mosailem; Al-Berik, O Hawsawi, Al-Bulaihi, Al-Shahrani; Otayf, Al-Faraj; Al-Shehri, Kanno, Al-Dawsari; Al-Muwallad.
El-Hadary, 45, should be in goal and get his record, after Egypt boss Hector Cuper named him as a substitute in the first two games.
Egypt (4-2-3-1): El-Hadary; Gabr, Hegazi, Fathy, Abdel Shafy; Hamed, Elneny, Trezeguet, Said; Salah, Mohsen.
Prem Tsar in the making
Al-Dawsari’s pace and direct approach would make him a threat to Premier League full-backs.
Best bet
Salah will fancy his chances of scoring against one of the tournament’s leakiest defences.
If the Saudis give it a go then he might have a couple of goals in him.
Fact me
- This is the first encounter between Saudi Arabia and Egypt at a tournament since the 1999 Confederations Cup – the Saudis won 5-1 thanks in part to four goals from Marzouk Al-Otaibi and Egypt receiving three red cards.
- Saudi Arabia have faced an African team in each of their four previous World Cup campaigns, never facing the same nation twice (W1 D2 L1). That one victory came against Morocco in 1994 – their first ever win at a World Cup finals.
- This will be Egypt’s first ever World Cup match against an Asian nation and the third different continent they’ve faced after Europe and South America.
- Each of the last eight goals Egypt have conceded in the World Cup have come in the second half of matches.
- Egypt haven’t won any of their six World Cup matches (W0 D2 L4). The only nation to play more games in the competition without ever recording a victory are Honduras (nine games).
- Defeat for either Saudi Arabia or Egypt in this game would see them be the first team to lose all three group games in this tournament, and the first to lose all three group games at a World Cup since Honduras in 2014.
- Saudi Arabia are yet to score a goal at the 2018 World Cup – there have only been 11 previous occasions of teams failing to score at a World Cup finals tournament in 3+ games, with Honduras and Algeria the last teams to do this in 2010.
- Saudi Arabia have now winless in their last 12 World Cup matches (W0 D2 L10) and they have lost their last four games in the competition without scoring a single goal.
- Since joining Liverpool in July 2017, Egyptian forward Mohamed Salah has scored 49 goals in 57 appearances for club and country in all competitions.
- Egypt’s Mohamed Salah scored with his only shot on target in a World Cup match in their defeat against Russia last time out.