Key events<\/p>\n
A peek inside the Australian dressing room. Yes, someone\u2019s been giving those Ted Lasso blu-rays a good old spin, haven\u2019t they.<\/p>\n
Do it. Photograph: Hannah Peters\/FIFA\/Getty ImagesDO IT. Photograph: Hannah Peters\/FIFA\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.28 EDT<\/p>\n If Mo Salah scores tonight, he\u2019ll tie his coach Hossam Hassan\u2019s Egyptian record of 69 international goals. The 34-year-old team captain has appeared in 119 appearances for the Pharaohs; Hassan reached his total after 177 caps. And while we\u2019re on the subject of the Egypt coach, here\u2019s a must-read piece on his close ties with the country\u2019s president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, the military general whose \u201csecurity apparatus has infiltrated every aspect of civilian life\u201d \u2026 including football.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Team news: Socceroos unchanged; Salah starts<\/p>\n For Australia it\u2019s simple. Coach Tony Popovic names the same starting XI as he did against Paraguay. Nestory Irankunda continues to lead the attack, while Jordan Bos remains as right wing-back.<\/p>\n Egypt make five changes from the team that started the 1-1 draw with Iran \u2026 though their top line is that Mo Salah has made it, despite hamstring concerns. He\u2019ll be joined up front by Omar Marmoush, with defenders Yasser Ibrahim and Karim Hafez, and midfielders Hamdy Fathy and Marwan Attia also coming into the team. Tr\u00e9z\u00e9guet and Mahmoud Saber drop to the bench, while Mohamed Abdelmonem and Ahmed Fatouh are injured, and Mohanad Lasheen is suspended.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.29 EDT<\/p>\n The teams<\/p>\n Australia: Beach, Circati, Souttar, Herrington, Bos, O\u2019Neill, Irvine, Behich, Volpato, Metcalfe, Irankunda. Egypt: Shobeir, Hany, Rabia, Ibrahim, Hafez, Fathy, Attia, Ashour, Salah, Ziko, Marmoush. Referee: Gustavo Tejera (Uruguay)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.27 EDT<\/p>\n \u2026 all of which brings us to this afternoon\u2019s showdown. It\u2019s the first competitive meeting between the two countries, though Egypt did win a Cairo friendly 3-0 back in 2010. (On the scoresheet for Egypt that day: Gedo, who earlier in the year had scored the winning goal in the Africa Cup of Nations final, and Mohamed Zidan, who had provided the assist. But we digress.)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n \u2026 and here\u2019s how Egypt got out of Group G. Undefeated, though they really rode their luck towards the end against Iran.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Here\u2019s how Australia made it through Group D. The hard yards covered in their first game against one of the pre-tournament hipster picks.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n This is how we saw things from the outset. Reacquaint yourself with today\u2019s cast and crew.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n Australia have made it out of the group stage at the World Cup<\/a> twice before. On both occasions, in 2006 and 2022, they lost their first knockout game to the eventual champions, respectively Italy and Argentina. That historical quirk will almost certainly be consigned to the dustbin this year, because either the Socceroos will win a knockout game for the first time ever, or if they lose again \u2026 well, you can get 500-1 on the Pharaohs going all the way, so best of luck with that.<\/p>\n Australia didn\u2019t exactly wow the world in getting through Group D. A 2-0 win over false-starting Turkey, a 2-0 loss against the USA, and a goalless draw with Paraguay. But they made it anyway. By contrast, while this isn\u2019t the greatest iteration of Egypt either, the seven-time champions of Africa do have Mo Salah primed for one last hurrah, and qualifying for the knockouts for the first time in four attempts has got them buzzing in a way the Socceroos are not<\/a>.<\/p>\n Still, on balance, it\u2019s too close to call. One of these countries will make history today by winning their first-ever World Cup knockout match, after which they\u2019ll most probably be playing the reigning champs Argentina in the last 16. A hell of a big prize is on offer, so may the best side win. Kick-off is at 1pm local\/2pm EDT\/7pm BST\/4am AEST. It\u2019s on!<\/p>\n
Subs: Ryan, Izzo, Degenek, Geria, Toure, Hrustic, Mabil, Devlin, Trewin, Burgess, Velupillay, Okon-Engstler, Yengi.<\/p>\n
Subs: El Shenawy, Soliman, Mohamed Alaa, Abdelmaguid, Trezeguet, Abdelkarim, Hassan, Emad, Adel, Saber, Tarek Alaa, Zizo.<\/p>\n