Egypt EGY

Egypt arrive at the 2026 World Cup as Africa's 29th-ranked side in the world, carrying the familiar weight of expectation that comes with having Mohamed Salah in the squad. Hossam Hassan takes charge of a nation that has long punched at the upper end of CAF football, and the Pharaohs will be hoping to translate continental pedigree into a genuine run on the global stage.

The road to the tournament told a familiar story: Salah led the way through qualifying, his brilliance doing much of the heavy lifting. Yet the limitations of this squad were laid bare at the Africa Cup of Nations, where Senegal inflicted a semi-final defeat and exposed the gap between Egypt's star and the depth behind him.

What Hassan's side do well, they do with conviction. Egypt are cohesive, often hard to score against, and bring an emotional commitment that can unsettle more technically gifted opponents. Those qualities have made them difficult to break down at their best, and no team at this tournament will relish facing them on a night when everything clicks.

The danger, however, is predictability. If opponents choose to double up on Salah and Egypt's midfield cannot find a way through the press, the attack can look blunt and the team toothless. That vulnerability is well-documented, and organised defences will have studied it closely.

The squad Hassan can call upon includes goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy, defenders Yasser Ibrahim, Mohamed Hany, Hossam Abdelmaguid and Ramy Rabia, midfielders Hamza Abdelkarim, Mostafa Ziko, Haissem Hassan, Hamdy Fathy and Marwan Attia, and attackers Ibrahim Adel, Mostafa 'Oufa' Shobeir and Ahmed Sayed 'Zizo' alongside Salah himself. Whether that supporting cast can ease the burden on their captain may well define how far Egypt go.