Lead
Egypt will give captain Mohamed Salah until the last possible moment to prove his fitness for Friday's World Cup round-of-32 clash against Australia in Dallas, as the forward continues to recover from a hamstring strain. Salah trained with the squad on Wednesday and Thursday, local time, but will not be rushed into the team if he is not fully fit, according to coach Hossam Hassan.
"We tried to introduce him to partial team training from yesterday," Hassan said at his pre-match press conference. "Salah is a passionate player. I won't run any risk unless he is 100 per cent fit to play tomorrow."
Salah's fitness has been under a cloud after he asked to be substituted during Egypt's 1-1 draw with Iran in their final group-stage game. The Egyptian Football Association confirmed he had a hamstring strain and would be assessed. On Wednesday, a post on social media by the Egypt national team suggested Salah would be fit to play, but how much involvement he will have will be decided late on the morning of the match.
Coverage Comparison
Reports from the build-up to the match focused on the fitness concerns surrounding Salah and other key Egyptian players. An ABC Australia report ahead of the game quoted Hassan as saying he would not run any risk unless Salah was 100 per cent fit, and that the decision on his involvement, whether in the starting lineup or as a substitute, would be made late. The report also noted that if Salah were not fit, the attacking responsibility would fall to Manchester City's Omar Marmoush.
Another ABC Australia report highlighted the Australian perspective, with assistant coach Hayden Foxe acknowledging the threat Salah poses. "There might be something there, but he's a player of enormous talent and I'm sure he'll be doing everything that he can to play in this game," Foxe said. "All we can do is control how we will measure up and how we will combat the opposition and who they start and who they don't start."
AllAfrica, meanwhile, reported that Egypt were facing "major injury concerns" ahead of the match, with captain Mohamed Salah among three key players being monitored by the medical team. The article confirmed that Salah had suffered a hamstring strain, and that left back Ahmed Fattouh was unlikely to recover in time. A separate live blog from ABC Australia, published on the day of the match, confirmed that Salah started the game, while Ahmed Fattouh and Mohamed Abdelmonem were ruled out with injuries.
Key claims
The most significant injury concern surrounds Salah, who left the field in the 57th minute against Iran after requesting a substitution. The Egyptian Football Association later confirmed scans showed a hamstring strain, for which he began treatment. Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said he would not risk Salah unless he was completely fit, but confirmed he was planning to have him available.
Another Egyptian injury concern was Ahmed Fattouh, who was reported as unlikely to recover from a more serious hamstring problem in time for the Australia match. Abdelmonem also suffered an injury against Iran, though reports do not detail the extent of his problem.
Egypt eventually beat Australia 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw, marking their first advancement to the last 16 of a World Cup. Salah converted Egypt's third penalty in the shootout, with Australia skipper Harry Soutar and Lucas Herrington missing their penalties. Emam Ashour scored the opening goal for Egypt from a header in the first half, while Mohamed Hany scored an own goal to level the match.
Historical context
Australia has never won a men's World Cup knockout game, a statistic highlighted in the coverage. Egypt, too, had not previously progressed past the group stage at a World Cup. Both teams were therefore seeking a historic win. Egypt will now face the winner of the match between Argentina and Cape Verde in the last 16 on July 7 in Atlanta.