March 26, (THEWILL) – Egypt defeated Senegal 1-0 in the first leg of their World Cup playoff, thanks to an early own goal.
Heading into the showdown, the double-header playoffs were described as a shootout between Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane for a place in Qatar later this year.
THEWILL recalls that in February, the same two countries met in the final of the TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, with Mane’s side defeating Egypt on penalties following a goalless draw.
Although Egypt won this time, they will have to work harder in the return leg next week because their lead is very slim and can be overturned by a more determined Senegalese side and their trophy-winning coach, Aliou Cisse.
The game’s only goal came from Saliou Ciss’ own goal, while Pharaohs goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawi successfully kept out Mane, Ismaila Sarr, and Idrissa Gana Gueye to maintain his clean sheet and preserve their lead.
Salah was instrumental to the own-goal as he took advantage of some sloppy Senegal defending to shoot at goal. But, he hit the crossbar only for the ball to ricochet into the net thanks to a deflection off the Ciss.
Senegal’s Nampalys Mendy received his first yellow card in the 43rd minute, before the Egyptians took a 1-0 lead into the interval.
In the second half, Senegal looked far more dangerous and had their best chance of the game in the 49th minute, when Mane headed Sarr’s cross from close range, but El-Shennawy was there to save it. Senegal had another chance minutes later, but Diedhiou’s header went just wide of the far post.
The Egyptians were unable to completely neutralise the African champions because Yasser Ibrahim and El-Wensh were occupied clearing crosses from both sides as Senegal turned up the pressure.
The Pharaohs eventually managed to retain the ball under their feet, but they were unable to produce any genuine chances until the 68th minute, when Mostafa Mohamed attempted an overhead kick that Trezeguet blocked.
Egypt’s best chance since the goal came in the 76th minute, when Salah’s free-kick cross found the foot of Yasser Ibrahim and Trezeguet, but their snap shots were wasted as the defence swept the ball away.
Sarr then came so agonisingly close to tying the game for Senegal when he found space on the right side, but Mohamed El-Shennawy deflected his effort away. At the other end, a lay-off from Salah saw Marmoush come close for Egypt in the 86th minute, but his shot struck the side netting.
Queiroz then substituted Nabil Dunga for Trezeguet to calm the nerves in the final minutes of the game, which ended in a 1-0 victory for Egypt.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
