MARRIOTT BUZZ NO. 13 - 2018

30 E X C L U S I V E M ohammed Salah, the Egyptian King as he is affectionately known, gracefully delivered Egypt to football’s promised land late last year by securing a precious berth at its global showpiece event. Salah decisively dispatched his penalty from the spot in the dying seconds of injury time in the second half against Congo, and with that single strike he would send a nation of 100 million into ecstasy, as they at last would see themselves feature in a tournament that had evaded their wanting grasp for almost 3 long decades. Led unquestionably by Salah’s inspiring world-class performances throughout the testing and seemingly endless qualification rounds, the national team’s heroics now mean that a whole new generation of football-mad Egyptians will for the first time ever, experience the unparalleled joy of seeing their proud nation compete in the greatest tournament competition in world sport. In anticipation of the national team’s upcoming group stage matches at the World Cup finals this summer, we take a stroll down memory lane to preview this magnificent milestone. Looking back on Egypt’s sparse yet nonetheless memorable history at the Mundial, our unforgettable road to Russia, and then to the promise of the not too distant future, with dreams of fortune and glory on a sacred stage we have finally earned the right to shine on. This is only the third time Egypt has secured qualification for the World Cup, with the other previous two coming in 1934 and 1990. Egypt has the honor of being the first African and Arab nation to play in a World Cup finals and when they qualified again - 56 years later - secured the more dubious record of becoming the team with the longest-ever gap between Mundial appearances. Egypt’s brief history at the World Cup means that only two players have enjoyed the distinction of scoring for their nation at the competition. Magdi Abdelghani cemented his legacy in the collective Egyptian conscience by scoring Egypt’s solitary goal at the 1990 edition in Italy, although his lesser- known compatriot Abdulrahman Fawzi notched an impressive two goals at the second-ever tournament (also hosted in Italy) in 1934. They might have remained until now the nation’s only two players to have secured this coveted honor, but Salah’s scintillating performances and Messi-like magic have seriously bolstered fans expectations of his team’s chances to produce something special in Russia. The Egyptian King, a nation’s hope, will continue on his The ‘Egyptian King’ and His Pharaohs Finally Return to the Greatest Stage in Sport