Omar Marmoush once rejected the chance to play for Canada, but in Vancouver on Sunday will aim to become a national hero back home in Egypt by making World Cup history.The Pharaohs are powerhouses of African football with a record seven continental titles but are yet to win a match in eight games at the World Cup.A meeting with New Zealand, ranked 56 places below Egypt in the FIFA rankings, offers a golden chance for an elusive World Cup victory and with it progress beyond the group stages for the first time.For Marmoush it is also an opportunity to make his mark on the global stage.Overshadowed by Mohamed Salah's superstar status in the national team, Marmoush has also had to play second fiddle at club level to Erling Haaland since joining Manchester City 17 months ago."It’s difficult but at the same time it makes you better, knowing that when you’re on the pitch you have to give your best. You have to perform because the next person is there, waiting to take your spot," Marmoush said in a recent interview with GQ Middle East."I trained hard to get here, you know? My whole career led up to this point – to compete and play with the best players in the world, trying to win titles."The Cairo native left his club, Wadi Degla, and his homeland at the age of 18 to make his career in Europe with German club Wolfsburg.After spells on loan at St. Pauli and Stuttgart, he rose to prominence as a Bundesliga star at Eintracht Frankfurt and earned a 70-million-euro ($80 million) move to City.During those early years in Germany, his progress caught the attention of the Canadian Soccer Association.Marmoush's parents obtained Canadian citizenship after working there prior to his birth."The Canadian national team contacted me... the head coach called me personally," he told Egyptian talk show Sahibat Al Saada."But when I received the call, my decision was already made: my national team is Egypt; I put Egypt above everything else." - 'Dream big' -