Mohamed Salah and Defining Success at the 2026 World Cup

Liverpool have eight first team players at the World Cup this summer with Alisson Becker representing Brazil, Florian Wirtz with Germany, Alexis Mac Allister with Argentina, Endo representing Japan, Alexander Isak lining up for Sweden, and Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch, and Cody Gakpo all key to the Netherlands’ hopes.

They will also have some important former Reds involved, with Andy Robertson Scotland’s captain and Ibrahima Konaté an option for France. No Liverpool player past or present at this summer’s World Cup, though, will be more key to the success his country is dreaming of or be in the limelight quite like Egypt’s Mohamed Salah.

Hopes are high for The Pharaohs at this World Cup, and in a Group G with Belgium, Iran, and New Zealand they will be expectated to advance to the knockout rounds—especially with the turmoil around an Iranian side facing customs and immigration obstacles and forced to sleep in Mexico while playing games in the United States.

However, set against that is the fact that Egypt have never advanced from the groups. In fact, they’ve even never won a game at a World Cup. So far, their best results were draws against Ireland and the Netherlands at the 1990 edition that weren’t enough to sneak them through. Anything better than that here would be new to them.

What, then, would be a fair definition of success? For Egypt and Salah both, is simply getting a win enough? Is finishing second the minimum? And if they do get it, with the Group G runner-up facing the Group D runner up and that group comprising the United States, Turkey, Paraguay, and Australia, should more be expected?

Especially as hosts, anything less than winning Group D would be a surprise for the United States—and count as disappointing—and on paper Egypt would at least seem as though they have a shot against their other potential opponents in the first knockout round which in this expanded World Cup will be the Round of 32.

Where, then, do people think Mo and Egypt end their World Cup adventure? The group stage, the Round of 32, the Round of 16—or could they somehow go even deeper?