Mohamed Salah starred for Egypt as the Liverpool hero created World Cup history for the Pharaohs04:06, 22 Jun 2026Updated 04:11, 22 Jun 2026Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah was on target for Egypt in their 3-1 triumph over New Zealand, guiding them to their first-ever World Cup win. The Pharaohs came from behind to move top of Group G after Finn Surman powered the All Whites infront with a first-half header.‌But Ziko, named after the Brazil icon, scored and provided the assist for the Egyptian King as Houssam Hassan's side staged a second-half fight-back. The Egypt attacker sparked the comeback with a free header that was too powerful for Milwall goalkeeper Max Crocombe on the hour mark and eight minutes later, Salah had his World Cup goal.‌The 32-year-old led the charge forward, played a neat one-two with Ziko and fired low with a trademark left-footed effort from the Anfield hero. Nine minutes from time, he turned provider as his corner was steered home by Trezeguet to rubber-stamp the three points and send them two points clear at the top of the group.‌Get the latest World Cup news straight to your inbox by signing up to our Make Football Great Again newsletter now!Salah's effort moved him ever closer to etching himself into Egyptian football record books with 68 goals for his country. He is now within one goal of equalling the record, held by current head coach Hassan, and could break the record in the illustrious World Cup tournament.There were joyous scenes at full-time as the Egyptian contingent paraded the pitch with the country's colours and flags. While for Salah, it was business as usual as the New Zealand players queued up to try and secure a swap with the iconic forward.‌It is a crucial tournament for the Liverpool striker as he will become a free agent by the time the knockout stages kick-off at the beginning of July.Salah endured a difficult season at Anfield, just months after signing a lucrative two-year deal on Merseyside after firing the Reds to the Premier League title.A public fallout with Arne Slot sparked the beginning of the end and the fractured relationship between the two eventually lead to Salah and Liverpool reaching an agreement to terminate his contract prematurely.‌Following an emotional Anfield send off against Brentford on the final day of the Premier League season, the Egyptian said: "I cried a lot – I think more than I did in my whole life! But it's very tough to leave a place like this. Also I cried a bit in the training ground."I'm not really an emotional guy, you guys don't see that in the media that much. You always see me tough, aggressive but inside me I take it like a baby. It's very tricky. We left our youth here, sharing everything from the beginning until the end. We wouldn't even dream of what we had but we did it for this club. We put it back where it belonged.‌"This is our message to the players in the dressing room. Look, the club now is fighting for everything. The fans will not accept less than that."They don't care that much about the result as long as you sweat and you give your blood here. They will love you forever. So this is my message to you guys: it's not about talent, it's about everything. This is why he [Robertson] is loved more than anyone probably, because he just gave it all on the field and fans love him for that. It's tricky to leave Liverpool, but this is life and we have to move on."While Salah and Andy Robertson move on in the beginning of another transitional phase for Liverpool, a new dawn is on the horizon with Andoni Iraola in the hot seat after Slot was dismissed.Article continues below