Arlington, July 4 (IANS) As Egypt added another chapter to their historical journey at the 2026 FIFA World Cup by advancing to the Round of 16 after edging Australia in penalties 4-2, forward Haissem Hassan said the win made 120 million people back home happy and has expected more Egyptian fan waiting at outside hotel.

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In their previous match, the Pharaohs had beaten New Zealand to record their first victory on the world stage. Now they are celebrating an Antipodean double after a shootout triumph secured by Hossam Abdelmaguid after misses by Australia’s Harry Souttar and Lucas Herrington.

“Honestly it’s incredible, because you know that in Egypt there are 120 million people you’ve made happy today, and you know that today there will be celebrations across the whole country,” said Hassan to FIFA.

“Knowing that you made so many people happy makes you happy too. I think it’s a perfect day. We’re very happy, we’re already looking forward to celebrating in the locker room. Afterward, we expect a lot of Egyptian people waiting for us at the hotel. Today is a day to celebrate.”

Egypt had gained an early lead in the game through Emam Ashour but Mohamed Hany’s second-half own goal meant a tight game went all the way to penalties with Hossam Hassan’s still-unbeaten side prevailing to set up a Round of 16 tie in Atlanta on July 8 against the winners of the Argentina v Cabo Verde tie.

“Honestly,(it was) a match full of emotion,” said Hassan. “We started off winning, then they equalised. There were chances on both sides. In the end, everyone knows that with penalties, either you get through or you’re eliminated. There was a lot of pressure, but in the end, thank God, we managed to win. We’ve entered Egypt’s history. Today is a perfect day.”

Goalkeeper Mostafa Shoubir, whose father Ahmed anchored the Egyptian net at Italia ’90, was rock solid again on the day for the Pharaohs and hailed the battling spirit displayed during the 120 minutes and spot kicks.

“It was Egyptian grit, it’s something in our genetics, it’s something amazing,” said Shoubir. “We fight until the end, even the next game, even if we play more games, we’re going to fight until the end. Even if we have shortage in some places because we have a lot of injuries. We fight until the end for the fans, for the country and for ourselves.

“History is written. We can’t believe that we did this to achieve this level. Since the first day for us here, we spoke with each other that we will not come here to play only the group stage and go back home. We tried our best and then luck was with us. Of course, God gave us a lot and we appreciate that and we hope to continue more,” he added.

–IANS

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