Belgium came from behind to draw 1-1 with Egypt in their World Cup opener on Monday, with the second-half introduction of record goalscorer Romelu Lukaku forcing the own goal which salvaged a point for his side.
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Egypt opened the scoring against the run of play on 19 minutes through a powerful strike by midfielder Emam Ashour for his first international goal.
Belgium spurned several chances to equalise, Jeremy Doku slicing horribly wide just before the break and Kevin De Bruyne rattling the post from a free kick as Egypt’s hopes grew of a first World Cup win at their fourth finals.
But Lukaku, who endured an injury-ravaged season at Italian side Napoli, came on in the 66th minute and some 20 seconds later Belgium were level, with the unfortunate Mohamed Hany turning a dangerous cross into his own net.
Either side could have won it late on as Egypt were not content to settle for a point, and Lukaku missed a golden opportunity to head the winner with two minutes of regular time remaining.
Both sides unsurprisingly began cautiously but Belgium soon took control, De Bruyne missing the game’s first real chance when he dragged a shot wide from the edge of the box.
Just as they seemed to be gaining the upper hand, though, Egypt took the lead when captain Mo Salah, playing in a deeper central role on his 34th birthday, found Ashour who fired past Thibaut Courtois at full stretch.
Belgium moved through the gears with halftime approaching, but Leandro Trossard totally missed the ball from a cutback by Doku, who should have levelled in added time.
De Bruyne’s free kick early in the second half beat goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir but not the post, while Egypt missed chances to extend their lead as Belgium increasingly lived dangerously in pursuit of an equaliser.
The introduction of Lukaku, who played little more than an hour for Napoli this season, ultimately proved the difference, though he showed his lack of match sharpness when, after Shobeir had denied Brandon Mechele, he headed fellow substitute Nicolas Raskin’s cross over the bar in a frantic end to the game.
Source: Khaleej Times