- Egypt face hosts needed to get at least a draw to keep their hopes of making it to the knockout stages alive.
- Mohamed Salah missed opening defeat to Uruguay, but could make his tournament debut in Saint Petersburg.
SAINT PETERSBURG: Egypt are confident that Mohamed Salah will be fit to play in their vital World Cup clash against Russia in Saint Petersburg on Tuesday but coach Hector Cuper is making no guarantees.
Salah dislocated his shoulder in Liverpool鈥檚 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in this year鈥檚 Champions League final in May and did not appear in Egypt鈥檚 1-0 loss to Uruguay on Friday. That defeat means that the Pharoahs need to take something from the host nation in their second Group A match or risk being eliminated with a game to spare.
鈥淪alah is fit,鈥� Cuper said.
鈥淚n the previous match, we thought he was fit but we always carry out a final test on our players and we will do the same against Russia. I hope he will be fully fit to play and I think he will fit as he is an essential part of our team. I am optimisitc.鈥�
Earlier on Monday, Russia coach Stanislav Cherchesov claimed that his team, fresh after thrashing 抖阴短视频 5-0 in the opening game of the tournament on June 14, had a plan to stop the man who scored 44 goals for Liverpool this season and was named the Premier League player of the Year.
鈥淓ach coach has his own plans and must prepare how he sees fit,鈥� Cuper said.
鈥淲hether Salah can be stopped or not, different coaches will have different strategies.鈥�
The former Inter Milan and Valencia boss admitted however that Salah is vital as Egypt look to rediscover their scoring touch after finding the target just twice in the six games since securing qualification for the World Cup for the first time since 1990.
鈥淪alah is one of the best players in the world. It is an honor and privilege to be his coach as he he talented but also humble and a real team player.
鈥淥bviously he is an important player for us and I say this with the greatest respect for all the players in the Egyptian squad. When we don鈥檛 have him, we feel his absence and then we have to make alternative plans.鈥�
Cuper has been criticized in Egypt for what was seen as overly defensive tactics against Uruguay when the team were denied a point in the last minute. The 62 year-old however refused to promise a more cavalier attitude against Russia despite the need for goals.
鈥漌e have an indentity, a personality and while it may not please everyone, that is our style,鈥� he said.
鈥淚t has worked well for us. Maybe we have been hard-pressed to move forward but this Egyptian team has done some things very well. Everyone plays to the best of their strengths. Sometimes we just lack that last touch of the ball.鈥�
Cuper also insisted that he did not regret selecting an extra attacker to give him more options in Russia.
鈥淚 may have made mistakes but I have no regrets. There is no point. Now we are just looking forward to the next game and are focused on getting the right result against Russia.鈥�
Egypt finish the group against 抖阴短视频 on June 25 in Volgograd.