Egypt will participate in the World Cup for the third time, their last two appearances coming in 1934 and 1990. They have been the most successful team in Africa, having won the African Cup of Nations a record seven times, but have failed to perform well in other FIFA tournaments. This might be the best chance for Egypt yet, with star man Mohamed Salah in the form of his life. They compete in Group A along with Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Uruguay and are they capable of advancing from it?

Defense

Mohamed El-Shenawy should play in goal for the national team after having done so in the qualifiers.

But we could see a surprise, as Mohamed El-Shenawy has not confirmed his spot. It will be very interesting to see the way the Egyptian team lines up due to their weak defense. We can expect Ahmed Fathi and Mohamed Abdul Shafi to play as the two full-backs who like to join a lot of the attacking plays. The West Bromwich Albion duo of Ahmed Hegazi and Gabr Ali will play for the national team. Egypt has other defensive options in Ramy Rabia and Samir Saad if required. It will also be interesting to see if Ahmed Elmohamedy and Omar Gaber will be given defensive duties or played in the midfield.

Midfield

The main man in the Egypt midfield will be Mohamed Elneny if he is fit throughout the campaign.

The Arsenal midfielder will bring experience and skill to the midfield in aiding the attack. Other midfielders who will get starting positions in the midfield are Tarek Hamed, Trezeguet, Kahraba, Ramadan Sobhi, and Amr Warda. Egypt would be expected to play a three-man midfield alternating between the range of players that they have.

If the midfield can keep up with Mohamed Salah's pace then Egypt could gain good momentum.

Attack

The main man in the attack force is going to be Mohamed Salah. Everyone on the team is going to look up to him and require him to step up at the big stage. Salah could be a candidate for the Golden Boot as well if Egypt manages to stay in the competition long enough.

Salah needs to prove himself if he is to be a candidate for the next Ballon d'Or. He will be joined up top with Ahmed Hassan and El-Said.

Expected lineup

Egypt would fancy playing a 4-3-3 formation and everyone in the team would have one instruction: To get the ball to Mohamed Salah, even though he will need full support from his teammates if he is to produce something magical for Egypt. The group stages will be a test for Egypt but they could make it out of the group stages if they sync well. The predicted starting 11 would be Mohamed El-Shenawy, Ahmed Fathi, Mohamed Abdul Shafi, Ahmed Hegazi, Gabr Ali, Mohamed Elneny, Ramadan Sobhi, Ahmed Elmohamedy, Mohamed Salah, Ahmed Hassan, and El-Said.
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