Salah-led Egypt can seal World Cup slot by beating Burkina Faso

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa: Liverpool star Mohamed Salah could this week become the second African football icon after Achraf Hakimi to ensure his presence at the 2026 World Cup in North America.

Salah will captain Egypt in Burkina Faso in a top-of-the-table African zone Group A qualifier on Tuesday, and a win for the Pharaohs will guarantee finishing first with two matches to spare.

Paris Saint-Germain star Hakimi helped Morocco become the first African qualifiers at the weekend when they scored five unanswered goals after Niger were reduced to 10 men by a red card in Rabat.

The nine group winners in Africa qualify for the World Cup, which will feature a record 48 nations, up from 32 at the last edition in Qatar three years ago.

Salah converted a penalty in a 2-0 win over Ethiopia in Cairo on Friday, and Manchester City striker Omar Marmoush also scored from a spot kick to maintain a five-point lead over the Burkinabe.

Burkina Faso crushed 10-man Djibouti 6-0 the same day with recent Brentford signing Dango Ouattara atoning for missing a penalty by scoring twice, including from another spot kick.

This will be the first time the Stallions play in the Burkinabe capital, Ouagadougou, during the 2026 World Cup campaign.

The August 4 Stadium, venue of the 1998 Africa Cup of Nations final won by Egypt against South Africa, fell into disrepair, leading to the ground being barred from hosting international fixtures.

Egypt beat Burkina Faso 2-1 when they met in Cairo last year, thanks to a whirlwind start with Mahmoud Hassan, popularly known as Trezeguet, scoring twice within seven minutes of the kick-off.

The Egyptians have struck 16 goals in seven qualifiers and 12 have come from Salah (seven) and Trezeguet (five). Salah lies second in the Golden Boot race, one goal behind Gabonese Denis Bouanga.

Lassina Traore, who plays for Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk, is the leading Burkinabe scorer with five goals, including one in Cairo that turned the second half into a tense affair.

Huge relief

Even if Egypt fail in Burkina Faso, they will hold a two-point lead and, given their remaining matches are against strugglers Djibouti and Guinea-Bissau in October, are still likely to win the group.

Securing a place at the 104-match tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico would be a huge relief for Egypt, who have been African champions seven times but World Cup qualifiers just twice.

Group H leaders Tunisia will become the second qualifiers after Morocco from Africa, a day before Egypt play, if they win in Equatorial Guinea on Monday.

Seeking a seventh World Cup appearance, the Carthage Eagles have dominated their section, winning six matches and drawing away to Namibia.

A surprise home loss by Namibia to Malawi has left them seven points behind Tunisia, who cannot be overtaken if they complete a double over the Equatoguineans having won 1-0 in Rades last year.

Equatorial Guinea began their campaign with 1-0 wins over Namibia and Liberia, but FIFA said the match-winner in both qualifiers, captain Emilio Nsue, was ineligible, and deducted six points.

FIFA later admitted Nsue was entitled to play but have yet to comment on an appeal by the Equatoguinean officials to have the points restored. They currently trail Tunisia by nine points.

Other countries could take significant steps toward qualifying, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cape Verde, South Africa, African champions Ivory Coast, Algeria and Ghana.

DR Congo lead Senegal by one point ahead of a Group B showdown in Kinshasa, and Cape Verde, an island nation of about 525,000 inhabitants, have a similar advantage over visiting Cameroon in Group D.

Hosts South Africa can stretch a Group C lead over Nigeria to nine points by beating them, while away wins for Ivory Coast over Gabon in Group F and Algeria against Guinea in Group G would virtually seal qualification.

Mali were seeded to win Group I, but a loss away to leaders and four-time World Cup qualifiers Ghana would end their hopes of topping the table.

The Malians only chance of making it to North America then would be to finish among the four best-ranked group runners-up and secure a place in African, then inter-continental play-offs.