Rise of a Football God -
Chapter 527 - 527: Round of 32; Egypt vs Chile
Italy was out. Colombia matched on.
And now, on the same day, it was Egypt and Chile's turn to tussle and fight for the Round of 16 spot that was at stake on the night.
[FIFA World Cup 2026 – Round of 32]
[Match 15: Egypt vs Chile]
[Venue: NRG Stadium, Houston, USA]
[Date: July 6th, 2026]
[Kick-off: 21:00 local time]
[Referee: Wilton Sampaio (Brazil)]
It was a clash of Africa vs South America.
The fans dubbed it the Pharaohs vs the Red Tide, an Underdog Epic.
Both nations weren't supposed to make it this far.
Both Egypt and Chile had fought tooth and nail as third-placed teams in their respective groups. Now, only one of them would walk away with a historic quarterfinal ticket.
This match was a slow burn; but when the fire came, it was blistering.
Egypt started in a 4-3-3 with Mohamed El Shenawy in goal, while ahead of him stood the defensive quadruple of Hegazi, Abdelmonem, Gaber, and Mohamed Hamdy.
In midfield was the trio of Elneny, Trezeguet, and Fathy, while the attacking trio comprised Mohamed Salah who was also the leader of the team, the captain, then Mostafa Mohamed, and then Omar Marmoush as the striker.
As for Chile, starting in a 4-2-3-1, Gabriel Arias stood in goal while ahead of him sat the defensive quadruple of Isla, Medel who captained this Chilean side, Maripan, and Suazo.
The midfield duo comprised Pulgar and Aranguiz, while the creative players upfront were Sanchez, Marcelino Nunez, and Brereton Diaz.
Eduardo Vargas led the line as the striker.
The first half was a game of tactics, tension, and a bit of magic.
FWEEE!
The game started as both teams played cagey football early on, cautious and methodical, unwilling to make any mistakes.
The slow burn started.
To neutral fans, it was a boring game but to the supporters of both nations in the stadium, it was not boring at all considering what was at stake as they roared their team on, cheering every good play from their players, and jeering any bold play from their opponents.
It was as much a clash between the players on the pitch just as it was a clash between the fans in the stadium stands.
And then, in the 23rd minute of the game, the deadlock was finally broken.
Who? Chile. Eduardo Vargas.
It came from nowhere. A long ball from the Chilean midfielder, Pulgar was misjudged by Abdelmonem, and Vargas pounced on it like a shark who smelled blood, drilling low into the far corner.
1-0 Chile.
The veteran striker was still delivering.
Chile was on the lead, but Egypt was not out yet as they pushed back with their talisman on the right.
1 goal behind now, Mohamed Salah finally let loose.
He buzzed on the right side of the pitch, torching his man with darting runs and crazy dribbles.
And then, in the 31st minute, he came close, a curling effort from outside the box whistling just wide.
Thousands of fans who rose up to their feet, almost celebrating already could only groan in frustration.
But you could feel something building.
And then, in the 45th minute, when the Chilean fans were already pressuring the referee to end the first half as soon as possible, BOOM, Egypt struck.
Mohamed Salah wrote his script and pasted it to the game.
A moment of magic. He picked the ball up on the right, danced through two defenders, and curled one into the side netting.
1-1.
The Pharaoh had spoken.
When Salah celebrated, the stadium literally melted in excitement from the Egyptian fans.
The first half came to an end 1-1.
The second half eventually started, and the pressure continued building.
Chile looked to slow the pace. But no, Egypt sped it up.
In the 52nd minute, a bullet header from Mostafa Mohamed forced a reflex stop from Chile's goalkeeper, Arias.
Chile were creaking.
And then, in the 64th minute, Egypt started a counterattack that saw Brereton unleash a rocket.
The ball smashed the post and bounced wide.
More fans groaned in frustration, hyperactive from the tension.
And then in the 70th minute, Egypt went again only to attract a corner flag this time.
It was form the corner that Egypt found their breakthrough.
A corner from Trezeguet found Zizo ghosting in at the far post, who side-footed home with calm precision.
2-1 Egypt!
BOOM!
The stadium exploded as Egypt finally turned the tide, their fans roaring in excitement as the players celebrated.
Chile were angry and frustrated now.
In the 78th minute, adding salt to their injury, the referee showed a second yellow card of the game to Gary Medel after a reckless lunge on Salah.
Chile were down to 10 men. The frustration was boiling over.
In the final minutes, all Egypt had to do was hold the line but it was a tough task as even with just 10 men, Chile threw everyone forward, even the goalkeeper Arias on the final corner.
In the 90th plus 4 minutes, Hegazi made an incredible save after Sanchez cut in and fired.
Hegazi drove across and blocked it with his chest. Heroic. It triggered roars of energy and adoration from the Egyptian fans.
Then…
FWEEE!
The final whistle sounded.
[FULL-TIME: Egypt 2-1 Chile]
The Pharaohs rise. From third-place underdogs to the Round of 16, Egypt's fairy tale continued.
Mohamed Salah won the man of the match award for his 1 goal, 1 assist, 5 dribbles, and 8 fouls drawn.
The commentator was spittin' bars when he said this.
"When Egypt needed a god, Salah answered like one".
The post-match reactions to this game were exciting, both on social media and right there on the ground in USA.
Rui Vitoria, the Egyptian coach was all smiles when he faced the media.
"They called us underdogs. That's fine. Now, they'll call us contenders". He grinned.
He was aura farming.
Salah, still panting and filled with sweat, smiled at the cameras.
"This is for Egypt. For our children. For the ones who believe".
Gary Medel, Chile's captain who got the red card also faced the media.
"We fought. But Salah was unplayable".
...
[I've been having very busy and stressful week guys. I started my final exams 2 days ago, I have another paper on Tuesday, and then the final exam on Friday. Wish me luck guys.]
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