Egypt have opened their Football Olympics campaign with a disappointing 0-0 draw with the Dominican Republic at Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes.
The Young Pharaohs are placed in Group C alongside Spain, Uzbekistan, and the Dominican Republic, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout rounds.
Just before the Egypt game, Spain managed to overcome Uzbekistan 2-1 at the Parc des Princes in Paris, thanks to goals from Marc Pubill and ex-Man City winger Sergio Gómez.
Rogério Micale’s men knew they had to collect the maximum three points ahead of two tough games coming up; however, unfortunately, they settled for an underwhelming draw in Nantes.
Al Ahly’s third-choice keeper Hamza Alaa started between the sticks, with Fenerbahçe’s Omar Fayed and Hossam Abdelmeguid of Zamalek ahead of him in defence. Kareem El-Debebs and Ahmed started as full-backs, while the midfield consisted of ex-Arsenal midfielder Elneny, Mohamed Shehata, and Mohamed Atef.
Upfront, Zamalek’s star Ahmed Sayed Zizo led the attacking lineup alongside Pyramids’ talent Ibrahim Adel and Bank Al Ahly’s Osama Faisal as the number nine.
Meanwhile, the most notable names in the Dominican Republic team were ex-Real Madrid and Valencia winger Peter González, who recently joined Getafe, and Real Madrid B defender Edgar Pujol.
Egypt XI: Hamza Alaa, Karim El-Debes, Hossam Abdelmaguid, Omar Fayed, Ahmed Eid; Mohamed Elneny, Mohamed Shehata, Ahmed Atef; Ahmed Sayed Zizo, Osama Faisal, Ibrahim Adel.
Dominican Republic XI: Xavier Valdez, Edgar Pujol, Joao Urbaez, Luiyi de Lucas, Nowend Lorenzo, Francsico Marizan, Fabian Messina, Heinz Morschel, Rafael Nunez, Peter Gonzalez, Oscar Urena.
Against all expectations, the Central American side dominated the opening 20 minutes and even managed to score past Alaa through Peter González after just 13 minutes; however, the goal was disallowed by Japanese referee Yoshimi Yamashita due to a foul committed on Hossam Abdelmaguid.
Just three minutes later, Heinz Morschel came so close to scoring for the Dominican Republic once again, but Omar Fayed saved a definite goal by clearing the ball off the line.
The Pharaohs then managed to adapt to the game and showed they are able to score more than once, first when Ibrahim Adel found a loose ball inside the box, but his effort went way wide in the 38th minute.
And just before half-time, Mohamed Elneny fired a shot from a distance, but his effort hit the post before going out for a goal kick.
Egypt continued its dominance after the break and Zizo couldn’t believe he failed to hit the net after failing to convert Karem El-Debes’ inch-perfect cross into the back of the net from inside the six-yard box.
Egypt controlled the ball but failed to create any real chances until the 83rd minute when Mohamed Elneny found Omar Fayed with a great cross, but the defender’s header went just above the empty net.
Ex-Panathinaikos striker Bilal Mazhar was put on by Micale in the 77th minute, before Mostafa Saad, Mohamed Hamdy, and Ziad Kamal all came on in the final five minutes, but failed to change the result.
Egypt now sit second in the group with one point, two behind leaders Spain, and their next game will see them face Uzbekistan on Saturday, July 27.