Belgium and Egypt played out an entertaining 1-1 draw to get Group G underway at the World Cup. It was an end-to-end affair for much of the evening in Seattle, with Egypt’s stubborn back line and composed midfield giving them a firm platform from which to build. No surprise, then, that the box-to-box Al Ahly midfielder Emam Ashour would open the scoring, firing beyond Thibaut Courtois from the edge of the area to put the Pharaohs in front. It might have been the winner, had Mohamed Hany not put the ball in his own net 24 minutes from time.
The old foes Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah were reunited in this match and both played key roles for their sides. De Bruyne rolled back the years as he pulled the strings in midfield for Belgium, and went close to equalising from a trademark free kick after the break, but hit the outside of the post. Salah, meanwhile, was responsible for assisting Ashour’s opener before being withdrawn with just under a quarter of an hour left to play.
These two sides were expected to top Group G, but this stalemate leaves the standings wide open ahead of Iran’s meeting with New Zealand later today. Catch up with the action as it happened below with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog, complete with expert insight and analysis.
Belgium vs Egypt latest news
- OWN GOAL! Belgium get back level
- GOAL! Ashour puts Egypt in front
- How to watch: BBC One
FULL-TIME: Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:58 , Arthur Ferridge
That does it! The points are shared in Seattle.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:57 , Arthur Ferridge
90+4mins: Tielelmans whips a free-kick into the near post and Mechele looks to flick it on beyond Shobeir, but cannot hit the target.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:53 , Arthur Ferridge
We will have five added minutes!
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:52 , Arthur Ferridge
90mins: Raskin has just appeared to throw Zizo to the ground in the box but the penalty appeal is fruitless!
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:51 , Arthur Ferridge
89mins: Fatouh and Fathy are off for Hafez and Adel.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:49 , Arthur Ferridge
87mins: Lukaku was sent on to win this game and he just had a gilt-edge chance to do exactly that, but heads over from Raskin’s deep cross.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:48 , Arthur Ferridge
86mins: De Bruyne and Doku are replaced by Fernandez-Pardo and Vanaken.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:45 , Arthur Ferridge
81mins: What a save from Shobeir! Mechele’s header looks destined for the far corner but the Egypt shot-stopper is at full stretch to deny him.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:41 , Arthur Ferridge
78mins: A smart move from Belgium ends in a blocked Lukaku shot, but this is largely positive from the Red Devils, who are pushing on in pursuit of a winner.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:39 , Arthur Ferridge
77mins: Mohamed Salah has been replaced by Zizo.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:35 , Arthur Ferridge
73mins: Shobeir saves well from Meunier.
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:33 , Arthur Ferridge
And we’re back underway for the final 20 minutes of this match after the second-half hydration break.
21:30 , Arthur Ferridge
Nevermind - hold the phone. It was an own goal from Hany.
GOAL! Belgium 1-1 Egypt
21:29 , Arthur Ferridge
AND LUKAKU SCORES IMMEDIATELY! He’s not been on the pitch 30 seconds and he’s already bundled one home! It’s unbelievable!
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:28 , Arthur Ferridge
66mins: Well, if you haven’t been impressed with the quality of Belgium’s finishing, this might brighten your day. Romelu Lukaku is on in place of Charles De Ketelaere.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:25 , Arthur Ferridge
63mins: Another great chance! Belgium are banging on the door now. Meunier picks the ball of the feet of Doku and squares for De Bruyne, whose finish is a bit tame and easily held by Shobeir.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:24 , Arthur Ferridge
62: My oh my, what a goal that would have been! Tielemans catches a sweet volley from the edge of the D and it sails just barely wide of the post.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:23 , Arthur Ferridge
61mins: Doku has gone to ground in the area again and is appealing for a penalty, but his appeal has been waved away by the referee and laughed away by the two Egypt defenders he was attempting to squeeze between.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:22 , Arthur Ferridge
60mins: De Bruyne finds himself on the ball in the area after a smart one-two but loses the ball.
That sets Egypt away on the counter and Marmoush is haring into the penalty area, but fires wide!
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:19 , Arthur Ferridge
Onana is hooked after a largely ineffectual 55 minutes. So too has Castagne. De Cuyper and Raskin come on.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:18 , Arthur Ferridge
56mins: It’s almost a second for Egypt! Salah gets his head on Ashour’s looping cross and draws a parry from Courtois.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:16 , Arthur Ferridge
53mins: It's off the post! That free-kick seemed to fly in slow motion as it dipped over the wall and Shobeir got nowhere near it... but it rattles the woodwork. So close!
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:14 , Arthur Ferridge
52mins: Doku wins a free-kick just on the edge of the box. Its in what one might term as De Bruyne range. Could this be the moment for Belgium to equalise?
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:14 , Arthur Ferridge
52mins: Egypt are totally smothering this Belgium attack. They haven’t quite parked the bus, but they are sitting in a back five off the ball and are very proactive in pressing dribblers, usually committing two or three men into any given tackle. Belgium just can’t seem to break them down.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:10 , Arthur Ferridge
48mins: Belgium still seem every bit as frustrated now as they were before the break. Doku goes to ground in a tackle, doesn’t get the foul he’s after, and throws a strop about it.
Meanwhile, Egypt race down the opposite end and go close to doubling their lead.
2ND HALF: Belgium 0-1 Egypt
21:07 , Arthur Ferridge
We’re back underway!
HALF-TIME: Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:50 , Arthur Ferridge
Egypt are peppering Belgium with corner after corner but the Red Devils hold firm. Courtois gets a firm hand to the latest cross to clear his lines, and that takes us into the break.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:49 , Arthur Ferridge
45+4mins: Marmoush beats his man and opts to shoot from a tight angle, but Coutois puts it behind for a corner.
Said corner leaves Marmoush in an almost identical position, and he wins a third.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:47 , Arthur Ferridge
45+2mins: That could have been it! De Ketelaere knocks down a cross for Doku but he does not catch his volley well, shanking the shot high and wide.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:46 , Arthur Ferridge
We will have four minutes of added time here.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:43 , Arthur Ferridge
43mins: A speculative long-range effort from De Bruyne catches De Ketelaere in the midriff. Just not meant to be for Belgium at the moment. Maybe the third quarter will be better...
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:39 , Arthur Ferridge
39mins: Great tackle! An Egypt defender flies in from nowhere to block De Ketelaere’s shot. Egypt are handing on for dear life here, though. A Belgium equaliser cannot be far away.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:38 , Arthur Ferridge
37mins: A break in play here as Fathy has gone down injured. Replays show he was stepped on by Tielemans - accidentally, I hasten to add - after a tackle. That’ll be a shining bruise by the time he wakes up tomorrow.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:35 , Arthur Ferridge
33mins: CLOSE! A rare foray forward from Egypt sees Ziko shoot at the bottom corner and his shot is on track to nestle in the side-netting, but Courtois pushes it around the post.
The Pharaohs then take the corner short but immediately lose it to Doku. He is fouled unceremoniously by El Fotouh as he looks to break away, and the Egyptian is booked.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:32 , Arthur Ferridge
Belgium just can’t quite find a way through this stubborn Egypt defence at the moment. They come closer as Castagne crosses for Tielemans, but he can’t quite reach it in the six yard box following a deflection from De Ketelaere.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:29 , Arthur Ferridge
28mins: De Bruyne draws a smart save from Shobeir with a close-range effort, but the play was already dead after Ashour was fouled in the area by Meunier.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:28 , Arthur Ferridge
27mins: Belgium have shot out of the gates into this second quarter, so to speak. They’re playing with real intent now - Ashour’s opener has lit a fire.
Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:24 , Arthur Ferridge
23mins: That takes us to the hydration break, which allows me to tell you a bit about Ashour.
He plies his trade at Al Ahly, and this was his first goal for the national team! What a way to do it as well.
The 28-year-old is renowned back home as a pure box-to-box engine.
GOAL! Belgium 0-1 Egypt
20:20 , Arthur Ferridge
And Egypt lead! What a hit from Ashour! He receives the ball on the edge of the area, takes a touch and lashes it into the bottom corner from range. Emphatic!
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:18 , Arthur Ferridge
17mins: Salah is fouled again. I make that the third foul he has won in the opening 20 minutes.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:17 , Arthur Ferridge
16mins: Doku is down now and seems to be in some discomfort after a coming together with Hany. It was a clumsy challenge from the Egyptian, whose boot was definitely high, but VAR don’t seem to be taking an interest.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:15 , Arthur Ferridge
14mins: Salah makes a driving run goalwards from deep in his own half but is pulled back by Castagne, who is duly booked. Cards flying around at a rate of knots so far!
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:13 , Arthur Ferridge
12mins: It has been fairly scrappy from Egypt in the opening exchanges. Lots of misplaced passes and such. Belgium have grown into the match well after starting on the back foot.
Marouane Attia goes into the book for a cynical trip on Ngoy as he broke at goal. Free-kick for Belgium some 40 yards out.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:10 , Arthur Ferridge
10mins: Trossard twists and turns in the box under pressure from two Egyptian defenders and is adamant he deserves a corner when the ball goes out of play, but a goal kick is given.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:09 , Arthur Ferridge
9mins: Salah hacks Onana down and is penalised, but gets away without punishment. The Belgian midfielder takes a moment to recover, though.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:07 , Arthur Ferridge
7mins: And De Bruyne has a go from the edge of the box! A collective gasp goes up from the crowd but his effort is wide.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:07 , Arthur Ferridge
6mins: It has been all Egypt in the opening stages but now Belgium get their first taste of forward motion. Trossard pulls the trigger from the edge of the area but sees his effort blocked.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:03 , Arthur Ferridge
2mins: Salah has started this match in an interesting role. He seems to be lining up centrally rather than in his traditional place on the right wing. Not absolutely clear whether he’s playing as a striker or a No10, but at first glance it appears to be the latter.
Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:01 , Arthur Ferridge
1mins: Not even thirty seconds on the clock and Onana is warned for a heavy-handed tackle on Ashour.
KICK-OFF! Belgium 0-0 Egypt
20:00 , Arthur Ferridge
Belgium get us underway in Seattle.
19:56 , Arthur Ferridge
That does it for the national anthems! Kick-off is now mere moments away.
Here we go...
19:52 , Arthur Ferridge
Our two teams are making their way to the middle of the pitch!
Anthems up next, then kick-off!
Team news reminder
19:45 , Arthur Ferridge
With a quarter of an hour to kick-off, here’s a reminder of tonight’s team news!
Belgium XI: Courtois; Mechele, Meunier, Castagne, Ngoy, De Bruyne, Tielemans, Onana, Trossard, Doku, De Ketelaere
Egypt XI: Shoubir, Ibrahim, Hany, Fatouh, Ashour, Zico, Fathy, Lashin, Attia, Salah, Marmoush
Egypt at the World Cup
19:40 , Arthur Ferridge
This is Egypt’s fourth appearance at a World Cup, and in their three previous visits, they have never progressed further than the round of 16.
That result came way back in the second iteration of this competition in 1934.
And across those three previous entires, they are yet to win a match. Can they do so today?
We will find out fairly soon...
Rudi Garcia expecting tricky tie
19:32 , Arthur Ferridge
"We are going to focus on our strengths, we want to be protagonists. We really need to go all-in tomorrow as if it were the final. It is one of the best African squads of all time. All teams have weaknesses. We will see tomorrow if we can exploit those weaknesses.”
Atmosphere building in Seattle
19:25 , Arthur Ferridge
Around the grounds
19:16 , Arthur Ferridge
Elsewhere in the World Cup, a shock result!
Cape Verde, in their first-ever match at a finals, have held Spain to a goalless draw!
De Bruyne relishing Salah reunion
19:07 , Arthur Ferridge
“You know, it’s going to be nice to see Mo (Salah) again. Omar (Marmoush) I know also. I played against Mo for 10 years. Our kids also went to the same school so I saw him from time to time and he’s a really nice guy, so it will be nice to see him, nice to compete again like old times.”
What to make of the Egypt team
18:54 , Arthur Ferridge
This Egypt squad is rather lacking in top-flight talent, but they do, if nothing else, have one of the better strike partnerships at this tournament.
Mohamed Salah lines up next to Omar Marmoush and will hope to get the better of an experienced and well-drilled Belgium back line.
Veteran goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy drops to the bench with Mostafa Shobeir preferred. The 26-year-old plies his trade at Al Ahly and has just eight caps to his name.
What to make of the Belgium team
18:46 , Arthur Ferridge
No massive surprises from Rudi Garcia and Belgium.
Timothy Castagne is an interesting pick at left-back in front of Maxin De Cuyper.
Veteran playmaker Kevin De Bruyne returns in attack, with Leandro Trossard and Jeremy Doku up ahead. Amadou Onana joins him in midfield.
Romelu Lukaku spent much of this Serie A season on the sidelines and unsurprisingly falls to the bench.
EGYPT CONFIRMED TEAM NEWS
18:37 , Arthur Ferridge
Egypt XI: Shoubir, Ibrahim, Hany, Fatouh, Ashour, Zico, Fathy, Lashin, Attia, Salah, Marmoush
Subs: Elshenawy, Soliman, M. Alaa, Abdelmaguid, Rabia, Abdelmoneim, Hafez, T. Alaa, Donga, Saber, Trezeguet, Abdelkarim, Hassan, Adel, Zizo
BELGIUM CONFIRMED TEAM NEWS
18:36 , Arthur Ferridge
Belgium XI: Courtois; Mechele, Meunier, Castagne, Ngoy, De Bruyne, Tielemans, Onana, Trossard, Doku, De Ketelaere
Subs: Lammens, Penders, Theate, De Cuyper, Winter, Seys, Witzel, Moreira, Vanaken, Saelemaekers, Raskin, Lukaku, Lukebakio, Fernandez
Team news up next
18:25 , Arthur Ferridge
Team news will be released 90 minutes before kick-off!
Salah World Cup record
18:20 , Arthur Ferridge
Mohamed Salah will be key to Egypt’s prospects here, and he tends to impress on the world stage.
He has two goals in two World Cup appearances, which came during defeats by Russia and Saudi Arabia in 2018.
Can he keep that hot streak going here?
Belgium vs Egypt head to head
18:15 , Arthur Ferridge
All four previous meetings between these two nations have been friendlies, with Belgium’s sole win coming with a 3-0 victory in Brussels before the 2018 World Cup.
Their last match, back in November 2022, saw a Salah-inspired Egypt triumph 2-1 in Kuwait ahead of a World Cup they were not involved in, and from which Belgium were dumped out early.
Belgium wins: 1
Egypt wins: 3
Draws: 0
Standard Sport prediction
18:05 , Arthur Ferridge
This is a really intriguing game between two teams with something to prove.
Belgium never achieved anything close to what they should have done with their much-vaunted golden generation, of whom the remaining members are still influential but now some way past their respective peaks.
Egypt’s total lack of World Cup pedigree may come as a surprise to some, given their enduring status as a top force in African football.
They will be extremely eager to finally register their first win on the sport’s grandest stage, but we expect them to be narrowly edged out by De Bruyne and Co here.
Belgium to win, 1-0.
Egypt early team news: Salah set to star
17:55 , Arthur Ferridge
Much for Egypt, as ever, rests on the shoulders of talismanic captain Mohamed Salah, who was struggling with a hamstring injury during the latter stages of his final campaign at Liverpool.
He went into the 2018 World Cup with a dislocated shoulder and missed the opening game before the Pharaohs crashed out in the group stage once more.
Belgium early team news: Two concerns
17:45 , Arthur Ferridge
Sporting defender Zeno Debast is in Belgium’s World Cup squad, but is not expected to play until later in the tournament due to injury.
Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku left training early last week in a fitness scare, but quickly returned.
All-time leading scorer Romelu Lukaku is still lacking match fitness after a season wrecked by injury.
He is one of four Belgium players competing at their fourth World Cup finals, along with Napoli team-mate Kevin de Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois and Axel Witsel.
How to watch Belgium vs Egypt
17:35 , Arthur Ferridge
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live and free-to-air on BBC One , with coverage beginning at 7:30pm BST.
Live stream: UK viewers can also catch the contest live online via the BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website.
Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog.
Free highlights: World Cup highlights are available on FIFA’s official YouTube channel and website, along with the BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website, ITVX app and ITV website.
Good evening
17:24 , Arthur Ferridge
Hello and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of Belgium vs Egypt at the World Cup!
This is a strong, much-changed Belgium side from that which exited the 2022 World Cup so ignominiously in the group stage. Can they impress against Mohamed Salah’s Pharaohs here?
All will be revealed! Follow along right here for minute-by-minute updates from Lumen Field, where proceedings will get underway at 8om BST.
Stick with us!
