Mohamed Salah (left) was key in Egypt's qualification for the orbital event.
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The Egyptian team, led by Mohamed Salah, confirmed this Wednesday its qualification for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada after beating Djibouti as a visitor on the penultimate date of Group A of the African qualifiers.
The match, played at the Larbi Zaoulies Stadium in Casablanca, Morocco, ended with a 3-0 victory for the Pharaohs, absolute leaders of their area, who with this victory over the bottom team achieved their fourth participation in the orbital event.
The team led by Hossam Hassan started as a big favorite against the bottom of the group and it didn't take long to prove it. Just after eight minutes, Ahmed Sayed “Zizo” overflowed from the right and launched a precise cross that Ibrahim Adel connected with a header to open the scoring.
It was the beginning of a solid and dominant performance by Egypt, which played with authority and without problems. The second goal came before the first quarter of an hour. Mohamed Salah, the great figure of the team, received a pass between the lines and coolly defined the near post to extend the advantage.
The Liverpool striker, captain and emblem of the team, was once again the protagonist in the complement. After a long pass from Marwan Ateya, he hit a mid-range volley that sealed the final 3-0 and mathematical qualification for the World Cup.
With his double, the experienced attacker signed a new decisive performance for a team that will seek to overcome the group stage in 2026, something it has never achieved in its three previous participations (1934, 1990 and 2018).
Earlier, Cape Verde came close to qualifying – the first in its history – during its visit to Libya, but the 3-3 draw in Benghazi, with referee controversy, left them one goal away from securing the spot. If they beat Eswatini on Monday, they will also be in the World Cup.
For its part, Ghana beat the Central African Republic 4-0 and was one draw away from confirming its fifth presence in a World Cup. With Egypt already classified, Africa already has three qualifiers defined. The others are Morocco and Tunisia, which achieved it in September.
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