New Zealand vs Egypt Preview & Betting Tips - Pharaohs to claim maiden WC win

Tolu Shotade

Editor

Last updated: Thu 18 Jun 2026 14:46

Tolu Shotade 18 Jun 2026

Share this article

Egypt are unbeaten in 5 of their last 6 matches, while New Zealand have won just once in their last 10.
Egypt previously beat New Zealand 1-0 in 2024 and are expected to keep a similar lineup.
Both sides seek their first Group G win, with Egypt entering as favorites.

Expired

Egypt Getty Images)

New Zealand and Egypt clash at BC Place in their second Group G fixture at the FIFA World Cup, with both teams seeking their first win in the tournament.

The North Africans have been generally solid lately and will be confident of getting the better of the All Whites, who have found things difficult.

Key Stats

New Zealand are winless in nine of their last 10 matches in all competitions.
New Zealand have lost seven of their last 10 matches in all competitions.
Egypt are unbeaten in five of their last six matches in all competitions.
Egypt won the only previous meeting between both teams.

One Previous Meeting

There have been just one previous meeting between the two teams, with Egypt claiming a 1-0 victory in a friendly back in 2024.

A Credible Opening Performance

New Zealand were held to a 2-2 draw by Iran in their opening Group G fixture. They led twice thanks to a brace from Elijah Just, but were pegged back both times.

Manager Darren Bazeley will take a few positives from the performance as his team looked lively in attack. The link-up between Just and Chris Wood also looked promising, with both men combining for the goals.

However, the result maintains a recent poor run for New Zealand, who have won just one of their last 10 matches in all competitions. The All Whites have also suffered seven defeats in this run.

Pharaohs Raring to Go

Egypt come into this clash off the back of a 1-1 draw with Belgium in their opening fixture. They struck early in the contest through Emam Ashour but could not see out the win.

While manager Hossam Hassan will be disappointed not to have held on for the win, he will take plenty of positives from the performance. The Pharaohs looked lively in attack and created a number of scoring opportunities while also maintaining their discipline at the back.

The draw with Belgium means Egypt are now unbeaten in four of their last five matches in all competitions. With the North Africans looking to kick on from there, the task will be to get Mohamed Salah firing in attack and also improving their end product in attack.

Team News and Predicted Line-ups

New Zealand (4-2-3-1): Max Crocombe; Tim Payne, Finn Surman, Michael Boxall, Liberato Cacace; Joe Bell, Marko Stamenic; Callum McCowatt, Sarpreet Singh, Elijah Just; Chris Wood.

Given the positives from the opening game, New Zealand are unlikely to make too many changes to the team. Wood and Just should feature in attack once again, while Boxall and Surman should continue in central defence.

Egypt (4-2-3-1): Mostafa Shobeir; Mohamed Hany, Yasser Ibrahim, Hamdy Fathy, Ahmed Fatouh; Marwan Attia, Mohanad Lasheen, Mostafa Ziko, Mohamed Salah, Emam Ashour, Omar Marmoush.

Egypt are likely to continue with a similar team to the one that started the opening fixture, with Salah set to continue in his new role behind Marmoush. Ibrahim and Fathy are also expected to maintain their partnership at centre-back.

Verdict

New Zealand v Egypt

Egypt’s overall form has been solid lately, and the draw against Group G favourites Belgium will give them confidence.

They should get the upper hand over New Zealand, who have lost seven of their last 10 matches.

Egypt

To Win

@3/5 - 4 Units

Bet £10 Get £30

with bonus code NEWBONUS

Available to new customers only. Make a qualifying deposit of £5 or more and claim the offer within 30 days of registering your account to qualify for 300% of that amount in Bet Credits, up to a maximum of £30 in Bet Credits. Once released, your Bet Credits will be held in your account balance and are non-withdrawable. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of qualifying bets. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Registration required. Time limits and T&Cs apply. The bonus code NEWBONUS can be used during registration but does not change the offer amount in any way. #ad

Bet at bet365

Worked as a sports anchor on radio between 2007 and 2012 before switching to television. Tolu was the lead presenter for the Italian Serie A, English Premier League and German Bundesliga on satellite television in Africa and joined SuperSport in 2017. He began writing for freetips.com in 2018 and has a deep knowledge of the African leagues as well as Europe's top 5 leagues including the UEFA Champions League and Europa League. Favourite Sports: Football addict with interests in boxing and tennis.