With Belgium vs Iran ending in a draw earlier on in the game, the fixture between Egypt and New Zealand became all the more important. With both sides chasing their first-ever win at a World Cup, three points would have put them in a brilliant position going into the final match week.

It was Egypt who finally won their first game, with goals from Mostafa Ziko, Trezeguet, and, of course, Mohamed Salah, putting them top of the group, two points clear of second place.

Some might have expected this game to be quite a cagey affair, but that was quickly dispelled as both sides looked to take the game to each other, with a couple of chances early on.

The first big chance fell to New Zealand, with Elijah Just, who scored a brace in the opening game, seeing his shot turned away by Shobeir.

The opening goal of the game came from the resulting corner, when Finn Surman rose highest to head home from Tim Payne’s corner, giving the All Whites a deserved lead.

Egypt emerged from the hydration break as the better side, with Omar Marmoush having Egypt’s first shot on target shortly after the restart, but it was easily saved by Crocombe. They maintained possession of the ball well for a spell, but struggled to get into the box.

The Pharaohs almost equalised just before the break, after Salah whipped in a brilliant cross from the right that looked destined for Emam Ashour, but goalscorer Surman got there just in the nick of time to put him off and prevent him from getting a touch.

Egypt upped the tempo in the second half, having three efforts on goal within the first 5 minutes after the resumption of play, as they looked to bring parity to the game, with New Zealand certainly on the back foot in the early stages of the second 45 minutes.

Knowing they were under the cosh, New Zealand’s defence dropped deeper and deeper, inviting more pressure from the Egyptians, and they got their reward when, in the 60th minute, Ziko found himself free in the penalty area, firing a header towards goal, which Crocombe could only palm into the roof of the net.

New Zealand looked completely off the pace, with Egypt cranking up the pressure even more on their opposition from Oceania.

Darren Bazeley would have been desperate for the hydration break to allow his men to regroup, but Egypt made the most of their pressure in the 67th minute. 

Mohamed Salah, who had drifted to the right-hand side after the half-time whistle, exchanged passes with Ziko, teeing up Salah to complete Egypt’s comeback with a fantastic low finish.

Egypt didn’t rest on their laurels, with New Zealand seemingly capitulating. At the 80-minute mark, the All Whites had mustered just two shots compared to Egypt’s nine, and didn’t look likely to score.

Egypt’s historic win was secured in the 82nd minute, when substitute Trezeguet headed home from a Mo Salah corner after some very poor defending by New Zealand.

While automatic qualification for the knockout stage isn’t yet secured, this win moves Egypt two points clear of any other nation in Group G and almost guarantees Hossam Hassan’s side passage to the knockout stages for the first time in the country’s history.

As eight of the best third-placed sides will qualify for the knockouts, even if they lose against Iran on the final day, four points should be enough to see them among the top eight.

Egypt were poor in the first half, with their defence, which had looked very strong against Belgium, appearing disjointed, and New Zealand exploited it.

However, going into the second half, Hassan made some changes up top, pushing Salah onto the right wing, Marmoush on the left wing, and Ziko through the middle, which was extremely effective in getting Egypt back into the game.

The Pharaoh’s defence sured up in the second half, and pairing that with a dangerous forward three, especially on the counter, then Egypt will feel confident that not only could they reach the knockout stages for the first time, but be able to pose a serious challenge to whoever they face.

Coming in as the lowest-ranked side participating in this summer’s World Cup, no one would have expected New Zealand to pick up a point at the tournament, let alone be competing in their two games so far.

Darren Bazeley’s side has stuck to their possession-based style of play despite many wondering whether it would work against tougher opposition, and it proved highly effective in their 2-2 draw with Iran.

The All Whites were fantastic in the first half against Egypt, but they will be left wondering where it all went wrong in the second 45, not troubling Egypt’s goal at all, and conceding three goals in the space of 24 minutes to succumb to their first loss in five World Cup games.

With Egypt's win over Iran, they now go into their fixture against Iran knowing that a point will be enough to make yet more history by securing automatic qualification to the knockout rounds for the first time.

New Zealand, on the other hand, will need a win against Belgium to have any chance of making it to the next round, but will face a Red Devils side that will also be in a make-or-break situation, having drawn their two opening games of the group, and now find themselves under immense pressure to avoid back-to-back disappointing World Cup group stage exits.

New Zealand have already shocked the masses with their performances so far at the World Cup, so there's no reason why Darren Bazeley's men won't believe they can continue to shock the world with a famous first World Cup win against an underwhelming Belgium.