Egypt came from behind to claim a crucial 3-1 victory over New Zealand and boost their hopes of reaching the World Cup knockout stages.

New Zealand made the brighter start and took an early lead, but Egypt produced an impressive second-half turnaround, scoring three unanswered goals to secure all three points.

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EGYPT 3-1 NEW ZEALAND

• Goals: Ziko, Salah, Trezeguet | Surman
• Assists: Hany, Ziko, Salah | Payne
• Tackle bonus: Lasheen
• Chances created bonus: Zico | Stamenic
• Top points scorers: Zico (14), Salah (11), Surman (9)

TEAM STATS

PLAYER STATS

SCOUT NOTES

• Both managers stuck with the same starting XIs that featured in Round 1, making no changes ahead of kick-off.
• Some of the underlying numbers were fairly even. Both sides created three big chances and won a similar number of corners. However, Egypt produced more expected goals (xG), registered eight more shots and, most importantly, scored three times.
• The first half remained finely balanced. It was New Zealand who struck first, though. Tim Payne ($3.6m) whipped in a dangerous corner that Finn Surman ($3.5m) powered home with a commanding header, underlining the All Whites’ threat from set-pieces.
• Egypt’s problems worsened shortly afterwards when key centre-back Hamdy Fathy ($4.4m) limped off injured. There has been no update on the severity of the issue, making him one to monitor ahead of the crucial Round 3 meeting with Iran.
• Egypt responded superbly after the break. They dominated possession and produced more than four times as many attempts on goal as New Zealand.
• The biggest Fantasy haul belonged to Mostafa Zico ($4.2m). Having now played more than 75 minutes in both World Cup matches, he looks firmly established in Egypt’s attack. A well-taken header and a clever backheel assist earned him an impressive 14-point return.
• But Egypt’s comeback still relied heavily on Mohamed Salah ($10.0m). He curled home brilliantly after being teed up by Zico before later providing an assist from a corner that substitute Trezeguet ($5.6m) headed into the net. Salah remained involved throughout, finishing the match with five key passes and five attempts on goal. He had question marks over his price tag ahead of the competition, but he appears to be justifying it.
• Egypt failed to keep a clean sheet, but Mohamed Hany ($3.6m) once again showed his attacking potential. His assist for Egypt’s opening goal, combined with Scouting Bonus points, rewarded Fantasy managers with a seven-point return.
• Outside of a couple of speculative efforts, Omar Marmoush ($7.8m) struggled to influence the game. The same applied to Emam Ashour ($4.6m). Although he could not repeat his Round 1 goal against Belgium, he still found himself in dangerous positions and missed a big chance.
• Looking ahead, the likes of Hany, Zico and Salah could become popular Fantasy picks for Egypt’s Round 3 clash with Iran.
• New Zealand assets may be less appealing after this result. A meeting with Belgium already looked difficult, and this performance did little to improve their prospects. Chris Wood ($6.5m) failed to register a single shot on target, while Elijah Just ($4.2m) managed one effort on target but could not find the net. Both players impressed in Round 1 but were unable to make the same impact here.
• Egypt are now on the brink of qualification after a convincing comeback victory. However, all four teams in the group still have a realistic chance of progressing with a positive result in Round 3.