Australia face Egypt in the Round of 32, as both national teams will make history if they win. Neither Australia nor Egypt have ever won a World Cup knockout match. The Socceroos have been here before, but this is a complete first for the Pharaohs.
History could repeat itself for the Socceroos, who made it to the Round of 16 four years ago, when they faced future world champions Argentina. Should they beat Egypt on Friday, they could find themselves against the same opponent, as long as the defending champions beat Cape Verde.
Overall, Australia have reached the Round of 16 twice before, and in both cases, they were tasked with beating the team that later won the whole tournament.
The Socceroos showed us a little bit of everything during the group stage. We were mostly impressed by their defensive strengths, but that surprising win over Turkey surely stands out too.
Egypt progressed from the group stage for the first time in the nation's history, considering that the 1934 World Cup was a single-elimination tournament without a group phase. Since then, the Pharaohs have reached the finals only twice, with group-stage exits in 1990 and 2018.
Egypt went undefeated this time, drawing with Belgium and Iran and beating New Zealand 3-1.
How the bookies view it: Fairly evenly matched, but the Pharaohs have the edge
As Australia and Egypt are separated by just one place in the FIFA World Rankings (27th and 29th), this will be one of the most evenly matched clashes at this stage.
Nevertheless, bookmakers favour Egypt, pricing them at 29/20, while Australia are available at 12/5. Apparently, there are expectations for a draw in regulation, and the odds are lower than usual at 19/10 and dropping. There will be more movement until kick-off, so you can find the best available options using our best mobile apps for world cup betting.
Recent head-to-head: One win each from ages ago
Australia and Egypt have met twice in friendlies in the distant past, with both claiming a win each.
The Socceroos have faced African national teams twice in World Cups before, and remain undefeated (W1, D1). More recently, Egypt claimed their first-ever World Cup win when they beat Australia's neighbour New Zealand.
Players to watch: Omar Marmoush to score his first World Cup goal
As one of the lowest-scoring national teams at this World Cup, it is difficult to find a valid pick that we can back with certainty. Egypt, on the other hand, have a couple of world-class players that can make the difference single-handedly.
Egypt's all-time top goalscorer, Mohamed Salah, contributed to three of his team's five goals so far (G1, A2), and you can expect him to be among the top players on the pitch against Australia.
Omar Marmoush is still looking for his first goal of the tournament, having attempted a total of nine shots across the three games. Coach Hossam Hassan gave him less playtime against Iran, so we expect Marmoush to be the biggest threat in the final third this time.
Probable line-ups
Australia: Beach, Herrington, Souttar, Circati, Behich, Okon-Engstler, O’Neill, Bos, Metcalfe, Volpato, Irankunda
Egypt: Shobeir, Hany, Rabia, Ibrahim, Hafez, Zizo, Attia, Ziko, Ashour, Salah, Marmoush
Anything else catch the eye?
On paper, Egypt have more firepower and individual experience, but Australia have displayed better defensive play, making this a difficult match to predict.
From what we've seen so far from both teams, and already several knockout fixtures, this feels like a potential draw at full time. Unless Egypt's stars produce something special, we see this match going into extra time.
Betting on goals here is also not a great option, primarily due to Australia's style. We expect a 1-1 draw, but 0-0 is also a real possibility.
Not all markets have been released yet, but we expect to see some cards in this clash. And since Omar Marmoush will be deep inside Australia's side of the pitch, we also expect him to get fouled. So far, he's been fouled seven times across three matches, and Bet365 offer 4/5 for him to be fouled twice in this match.
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