CAIRO: The young pharaohs are aiming for their second consecutive victory to continue their winning streak and secure their place in the round of 16 in the U-20 World Cup when they host Paraguay in the Cairo Stadium on Monday.
By the end of round one of the group stage, Egypt stands on the top of Group A following an impressive 4-1 victory over Trinidad & Tobago while the South American opponents enter the game with one point from their goalless draw against Italy.
Paraguay will be aiming at upsetting the hosts to earn the crucial three points that would secure qualification to the next round ahead of their easy game against Trinidad & Tobago, while Egypt will be satisfied with a draw.
Having watched the game between Italy and Paraguay, the Egyptian team mangers Hani Ramzy and Miroslav Soukop said that they won’t be fooled by the result as both teams didn’t show all their cards.
“The game against Paraguay will be totally different from the one against Trinidad & Tobago; they surely have watched us and gathered information about our players, said Soukop.
Egypt will be depending on the trio of Mohamed Talaat, Hossam Arafat and Mostafa “Afroto Mahmoud to score goals after their outstanding performance in the previous game. Changes in the line-up of Trinidad & Tobago’s game are expected to be limited.
However, Soukop will have to work on his team’s defense which appeared vulnerable, especially in counter attacks, as both stoppers Salah Solieman and Ahmed Hegazy failed to communicate with each other effectively and committed a number of defensive errors.
On the other hand, the Paraguay team, led by Argentinean Adrian Coria, showed a solid performance in their previous game with strong attacking abilities and compact defense. However, their strikers Federico Santander and Robin Ramirez were unable to turn the chances they had into goals.
“We watched Egypt in their opening match and got a good idea of how they play. It’s a very important game, but it’s one that we’re going into with confidence. We intend to win it, and move closer to our target of making it through to the next round; We’ll have to be more dangerous in front of the goal though, Coria Said.
Both teams met once in the tournament in Argentina in the 2001 World Cup, vying for the third and fourth places. Egypt won 1-0.
In other games, Spain Impressed in Group B with a stunning 8-0 win over Tahiti while Venezuela marked the first surprise of the tournament after beating favorites Nigeria 1-0.
In Group C, Germany opened their campaign with a 3-0 victory over the USA while South Korea received their first loss on the hands of the indomitable lions of Cameroon 2-0.
In group D, Ghana edged through Uzbekistan 2-1, while Uruguay defeated England 1-0.
Players who stood out in the tournament after round one were Hossam Arafat and Afroto from Egypt, Aaron Niguez from Spain and Andre Ayew from Ghana.
Today s schedule
Group A
Italy vs. Trinidad & Tobago – Cairo Stadium, Cairo (18:45 CLT)
Egypt vs. Paraguay – Cairo Stadium, Cairo (21:30 CLT)
Group B
Nigeria vs. Spain – Al Salam Stadium, Cairo (16:00 CLT)
Tahiti vs. Venezuela – Al Salam Stadium, Cairo (18:45 CLT)
