Footage during Egypt's match against Australia, last Friday, in the 2026 World Cup, revealed an exciting incident that preceded the Pharaohs' victory over the Kangaroos by penalty kicks.
The Egyptian national team will face Argentina in the round of 16 of the World Cup on Tuesday, July 7, at the "Atlanta" stadium, as the Tango dancers qualified at the expense of Cape Verde, winning (3-2).
Before Egypt's national team qualified for the World Cup round of 16 against Australia, footage showed the Pharaohs' technical staff using a video clip of a penalty kick executed by Kylian Mbappe, a player for Real Madrid and the French national team, just before the penalty shootout began.
The footage showed a member of the Egyptian national team's technical staff, in the presence of head coach Hossam Hassan, showing the penalty takers, including the captain and star of the team, Mohamed Salah, a clip of a penalty kick scored by Mbappe with Real Madrid against Levante last January.
This footage caught the attention of international newspapers, which covered the event with scrutiny, attributing Egypt's clear superiority to the strong observation of the style and movements of Australia's goalkeeper, Mathew Ryan, during the penalty shootout.
International newspapers' commentary on Egypt's penalty kicks against Australia
Mundo Deportivo
The Egyptian national team spent its time during the match against Australia watching footage of Real Madrid, specifically penalty kicks.
Australia's coach decided to substitute the goalkeeper who started the match and brought in Mathew Ryan specifically for the penalty shootout, and here comes the role of Real Madrid, as the goalkeeper played with Levante last season.
The Pharaohs' players and their coach Hossam Hassan reviewed some of his saves during penalty kicks, where he often dove, and where and how he positioned himself on the goal line.
In short, everything the goalkeeper did with Levante when facing penalty kicks was studied, and at the forefront of the analyzed penalty kicks was one taken by Mbappe with Real Madrid.
The Sun
Egyptian national team players were notably seen gathering around a laptop to watch some footage moments before executing penalty kicks against Australia in the World Cup encounter.
There was a good reason for watching as the Australian goalkeeper, Mat Ryan, faced Real Madrid wearing Levante's jersey in the Spanish league, and the 34-year-old Ryan caused penalty kicks in both the home and away matches against Real Madrid, where Kylian Mbappe outperformed him.
Egyptian players studied Ryan's movements on the goal line before stepping up to face the veteran goalkeeper, as this would give them an idea of how Mbappe managed to beat him from the penalty spot.
Ryan saved one penalty last season, which came in Levante's 3-0 win over Sevilla in January, and watching Real Madrid footage seemed to pay off as he failed to save any of the four penalty kicks he faced.
AS
The Egyptian national team succeeded in qualifying at the expense of its Australian counterpart after defeating them by penalty kicks, as the Pharaohs' players showed calmness and clear superiority in execution, while the veteran goalkeeper Mathew Ryan failed to save any kick despite being brought on as a substitute in the 119th minute specifically for this task.
Real Madrid played an unexpected role in this victory; as the Egyptian national team studied before the match a recording of a previous match between the royal team and Levante (whose goal is guarded by Ryan), specifically the penalty kick scored by Mbappe in his net in the Spanish league, to analyze the goalkeeper's positioning accurately.
The players, led by Mohamed Salah, noticed that goalkeeper Ryan tends to move early to guess the ball's angle, and based on this observation, Salah trusted that the goalkeeper would not remain in the middle of the goal, so he risked taking his kick in the famous "Panenka" style to successfully nestle in the net.
TNT Sports
The match between Egypt and Australia, before executing penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw, and just before the kicks began, saw the Pharaohs' players gathering around a tablet to watch a special video of Frenchman Kylian Mbappe, taking a previous penalty kick in the Spanish league; to study and read the Australian goalkeeper's movements.
The reason for choosing Mbappe's clip was that the penalty kick he scored was against Levante, whose goal is guarded by Mat Ryan himself, and through the video, it was noted that the goalkeeper moves quickly from side to side before the shot and tends to guess early, giving them a clear idea of how he reacts to penalty kicks.
Based on this insight, captain Mohamed Salah exploited the reading of the goalkeeper's movements and launched a bold "Panenka" style kick into the heart of the net, and Ryan was unable to save any kick, allowing the Pharaohs to officially qualify for the round of 16.
