Belgium Aims to Continue Unbeaten Streak Against Egypt in World Cup Preview
Seattle. Belgium will be looking to continue their excellent form when they take to the field against Egypt in their first match of FIFA World Cup Group G, which will be held at Seattle Stadium on Tuesday morning.
Under the leadership of Rudi Garcia, Belgium is unbeaten in their last 13 matches. In their last match, they defeated Tunisia 5-0, with 5 different players scoring in the match held in Brussels.
This was a continuation of an impressive comeback for Garcia, who replaced Domenico Tedesco in January 2025. Despite losing their first match, he managed to save the 'Red Devils' from relegation from 'League A' of the UEFA Nations League.
Since then, the French coach has led the team on an unbeaten journey in the World Cup qualifiers. Belgium, topping their group, scored 29 goals. Only Norway (37) scored more goals than Belgium in the European qualifiers.
Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku was directly involved in about a quarter of Belgium's goals in the qualifying phase. He scored 5 goals and assisted 2 others. He also provided 2 assists in the win against Tunisia.
With coach Garcia stating that Romelu Lukaku is not fit, Doku will have to take responsibility for breaking Belgium's goal drought. Lukaku, who has been sidelined with recurrent muscle injuries in the 2025-26 season, has lost his form.
However, Lukaku is Belgium's all-time top scorer and will be eager to make his mark in this tournament. This tournament is likely to be the last World Cup for the remaining players of the golden generation of the national team.
Mohamed Salah will also enter the field aiming to prove himself in this tournament after a disappointing final season with Liverpool. His 14 goals and assists in the league were his worst performance since the 2014-15 season (when he played for Chelsea and Fiorentina).
The Egyptian forward will celebrate his 34th birthday on the day of this match. Undoubtedly, he will want to make this day special by leading his country to their first World Cup victory.
Salah contributed to 60 percent of Egypt's goals in the qualifying phase (9 goals, 3 assists). Egypt, known by the nickname 'The Pharaohs', will need a similarly impressive international form from Salah in the World Cup.
In their final preparation match before the World Cup, Egypt defeated Russia 1-0 and lost 2-1 to Brazil. Salah was on the field in the second half of the match against Brazil.
Despite losing their last match, Egypt enters the tournament without any injury concerns. However, head coach Hossam Hassan is likely to adopt a defensive strategy, which will give Omar Marmoush and Salah ample freedom in attack.
Doku, who was injured during training, is reported to be fully fit. Barring any unexpected issues, Thibaut Courtois will take charge of goalkeeping. This will be his 16th World Cup appearance. With this, he will equal Jan Ceulemans. The record for most World Cup matches played for Belgium, with 17, is held by Enzo Scifo.
Belgium and Egypt Head-to-Head
Belgium and Egypt will face each other for the first time in the World Cup. However, they have played 4 friendly matches before.
Egypt has won 3 matches, while Belgium has won only 1. In their last meeting in Kuwait City in November 2022, Egypt won 2-1. Mostafa Mohamed and Trezeguet scored for Egypt in that match.
However, in their 5 matches against African teams in the World Cup, Belgium has lost only one (3 wins, 1 draw). The only loss Belgium suffered was a 2-0 defeat against Morocco in the 2022 World Cup.
It was because of that result that Belgium was eliminated from the group stage. However, Belgium is expected not to repeat such a disappointing performance in this World Cup being held in North America.
Belgium and Egypt Squads
- Belgium: Thibaut Courtois, Senne Lammens, Mike Penders, Zeno Debast, Arthur Theate, Brandon Mechele, Maxim De Cuyper, Thomas Meunier, Koni De Winter, Joaquin Sese, Timothy Castagne, Nathan Ngoy, Axel Witsel, Kevin De Bruyne, Youri Tielemans, Hans Vanaken, Nicolas Raskin, Amadou Onana, Romelu Lukaku, Leandro Trossard, Jeremy Doku, Dodi Lukebakio, Charles De Ketelaere, Diego Moreira, Alexis Saelemaekers, Matias Fernandez-Pardo.
- Egypt: Mohamed El Shenawy, El Mehdi Soliman, Mostafa Shobeir, Mohamed Alaa, Yasser Ibrahim, Mohamed Hany, Hossam Abdelmaguid, Rami Rabia, Mohamed Abdelmonem, Ahmed Fattouh, Karim Hafez, Tarek Alaa, Imam Ashour, Mostafa Zico, Hamdi Fathi, Mohannad Lashin, Nabil Emad Dunga, Marwan Attia, Mahmoud Saber, Trezeguet, Hamza Abdelkarim, Mohamed Salah, Haitham Hassan, Ibrahim Adel, Omar Marmoush, Gizo.
This specific news has been automatically translated by AI. As a result, there may be some inaccuracies or language errors.
