FIFA WORLD CUP
World Cup 2018: Uruguay vs Egypt Preview
Yekaterinburg, Russia – Uruguay and Egypt will go will go head-to-head in Friday’s Group A clash at the Ekaterinburg Arena.
Uruguay have been tipped as favorites to finish top of the group which also includes Saudi Arabia and hosts Russia and could be a potential dark horse for the tournament. Egypt on the other hand qualified for the world cup finals for the first time since 1990.
Current Form:
Uruguay head to Russia on the back of just one defeat in their last nine games, having kept clean sheets in six of those. Edison Cavani will look to continue his impressive scoring record for his country. The Paris Saint-Germain star scored ten goals in the 18 qualifying games for Uruguay.
Egypt will start their World Cup campaign in poor form after failing to win their last six games. A 3-0 defeat by Belgium in their last game means that the seven time African champions will not be high on confidence when playing in Friday’s early kick off.
Previous Encounter: Egypt 0-2 Uruguay (2006)
The two countries have only played once in their history and that came in a 2006 friendly at the Alexandria Stadium in Egypt, where goals from Uruguay defender Diego Godin and an own goal from Egyptian defender Abdelzaher El Saqqa was enough for the South Americans to seal a comfortable win.
Team News:
Uruguay have a fully fit squad to choose from, with coach Oscar Tabarez expected to go with the traditional 4-4-2 formation. Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani will lead the line upfront and will be key to Uruguay’s chances of success.
Egypt have no fresh injuries concerns. Mohamed Salah has been given the green light to start the game against Uruguay. Coach Hector Cúper has adopted a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Potential Lineups:
Uruguay (4-4-2) : Muslera, Gaston Silva, Gimenez, Godin, Caceres, De Arrascaeta, Bentancur, Vecino, Laxalt, Suraez, Cavani
Egypt (4-2-3-1) : El Hadary, Abdel-Shafy, Ali Gabr, Hegazi, Fathy, Abdallah Said, El Neny, Hamed, Warda, Sobhi, Salah
Match Prediction:
Uruguay are in better form than their Friday opponents and should have too much fire power for the Egyptians to handle. This should be a comfortable win for the South Americans.
Prediction: Uruguay 2-0 Egypt
