Romelu Lukaku will not be a starter for Belgium against Egypt (Getty Images)
Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku starts on the bench for the World Cup Group G opener against Egypt after an injury-hit season for Italian side Napoli.
Lukaku is Belgium’s record goalscorer, but did not start a game for Napoli in 2025-26.
Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and midfielder Kevin De Bruyne start for Belgium in their fourth World Cup campaign.
Their lineup is:
Thibaut Courtois; Thomas Meunier, Brandon Mechele, Nathan Ngoy, Timothy Castagne; Youri Tielemans, Kevin De Bruyne, Amadou Onana; Leandro Trossard, Charles De Ketelaere, Jeremy Doku.
Egypt, seeking their first World Cup finals win in their fourth appearance, are captained by Mo Salah on his 34th birthday.
For Egypt, things tend to revolve around longtime Liverpool striker Salah.
This will probably be his last World Cup – although when we look at the likes of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and indeed Vozinha, playing at 40, maybe not.
Here is the Egyptian lineup:
With reporting from Reuters