New Zealand will meet Egypt at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada, in Group G's second match day of the 2026 World Cup at 6 PM local time (2 AM BST) as both sides chase an elusive first win on football's grandest stage.

Going into this summer's tournament, it was expected that New Zealand would be the weakest side in Group G, given their status as the lowest-ranked nation at the 2026 World Cup.

Despite the odds being stacked against them, the All Whites put on one of the most surprising performances of the tournament so far, showing grit and determination to twice go ahead against Iran, and would have been disappointed that they couldn't hold onto said lead, with the game ending 2-2.

Goal-scoring was expected to be a major issue for New Zealand, with the Oceania side heavily relying on 34-year-old Chris Wood, the only player in the starting line-up to have reached double figures for international goals with the All Whites before the tournament kicked off.

Wood went from goal-scorer to provider against Iran, putting on a brilliant display as a target man, the focal point of the attack. The veteran forward was on hand to provide both assists for Motherwell forward Elijah Just's brace against the Middle Eastern side, helping New Zealand keep their unbeaten run in their last four World Cup games going, and edge closer to that elusive first win.

Egypt, on the other hand, could also be disappointed to have not secured their first-ever World Cup win after drawing 1-1 with a sub-par Belgium side in their tournament opener.

The Pharaohs opened the scoring with Emam Ashour's long-range strike, and Egypt's impressive defensive unit held firm until the 66th minute, when Mohamed Hany scored an unfortunate own goal after being brilliant in marking Jeremy Doku out of the game in the first half.

Both sides come into this game with no fresh injury concerns after the opening fixtures of Group G, though New Zealand suffered a major injury blow before the start of the tournament, with Peterborough United player Matt Garbett forced out with a hamstring injury.

Mohamed Salah has been nursing a hamstring injury heading into this tournament, with the Egyptian declining to comment on its severity in the build-up to the World Cup kicking off.

After a poor season for Liverpool, the 34-year-old looked much improved playing in a more central role, and provided the assist for Egypt's opener, and looked dangerous on the break alongside Manchester City's Omar Marmoush.

Salah was substituted off with 75 minutes on the clock, but it's unclear whether it was a tactical or fitness-related decision to ensure he's fit enough to start against New Zealand on Sunday and Iran in their last group game.

Egypt showed against Belgium that they will be a difficult side to beat this World Cup, with Hossam Hassan setting them up to play to their strength.

In an international friendly against Spain in the months leading up to the tournament, Egypt shut out the reigning European champions, coming away with a 0-0 draw against a quite strong starting lineup.

The Pharaohs did brilliantly for almost 70 minutes against Belgium before conceding the unfortunate own goal, but apart from that, they allowed just three Belgian shots on target.

Pair that with the danger of Salah and Marmoush on the counterattack, and you have a side well set up for tournament football.

New Zealand will have a much tougher time breaking down Egypt's solid defensive line. Apart from the 2-2 draw with Iran, the All Whites haven't scored more than one goal in any of their 10 games since their World Cup qualifiers last year.

Prediction: New Zealand 0-2 Egypt