A fourth-minute own goal by Senegal’s Saliou Ciss was enough to give Egypt a 1-0 win in the first leg of their World Cup play-off in Cairo.
Ciss was incredibly unlucky when a shot from Mohamed Salah was pushed on to the bar by Edouard Mendy before striking the defender and going into the net.
The game was billed as a rerun of the recent Africa Cup of Nations final – won by Senegal on penalties after the match ended 0-0 – and to an extent it captured the cagey nature of that occasion back in February, with few chances of significance created by either side, BBC report.
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The game featured Liverpool’s two star strikers Salah and Sadio Mane, but neither of them had stellar games.
Nevertheless, on a day dominated by north African teams – Algeria and Tunisia also won 1-0, albeit away, and Morocco got an away goal in a draw in DR Congo – Ciss’s unfortunate moment meant Egypt matched the achievements of their continental neighbours.
The teams meet again in the second leg on Tuesday, with the winner qualifying for November’s tournament in Qatar.
