Egypt's Mohamed Salah pictured during a training session. | Photo Credit: AP

New Zealand must stay calm, remain disciplined and find ​a collective way to contain Mohamed Salah if it is ⁠to seize a historic World Cup chance against Egypt, former All Whites coach Ricki Herbert told Reuters.

After holding Iran to a 2-2 draw in its opener, New Zealand is ‌eyeing a first win in its World Cup history, and curbing the Egypt captain’s influence in Vancouver on Sunday may be ‌key to a breakthrough.

That will mean striking a balance between stifling Salah’s ‌space ⁠without overcommitting players to mark him, said Herbert, who steered ⁠New Zealand at South Africa 2010.

“He’s a world-class player, so he’ll need to be given that respect,” Herbert said in a call from the Canadian city.

“If he gets New Zealand isolated ​in 1 v 1 situations, then ‌he will make life extremely difficult.

“On the other hand, they must be careful not to overcrowd him in case they get isolated somewhere else as well.

“So, it will be about making sure we’re tight and tidy, ‌eliminate his ability to turn and play forward and hurt us with ​those killing passes.”

READ: Coach says Iran still being treated poorly by US at World Cup ahead of second match

Herbert said the attacking partnership between Salah and Omar Marmoush would provide a major test for New Zealand’s ⁠defence, and he regarded Egypt overall as probably a tougher matchup for the All Whites than the Iranians.

However, he was sure Egypt would also pay New Zealand ‌due respect after the Iran draw.

“The Iran match was a good stepping stone for the All Whites into the World Cup and a good way to introduce themselves,” he said.

“They probably could have taken three points from Iran. I’m sure they’ll have plenty of reflection over how they conceded the goals.”

New Zealand won enormous credit under Herbert in South Africa when it bowed ‌out of the tournament unbeaten after the group phase.

On Sunday, Herbert will be a spectator ​in the Vancouver crowd, confident that victory awaits if the players can relax and soak up the moment.

“I would say to ⁠them: ‘Make sure you enjoy the moment because you don’t want to bring any external ⁠pressure to the game’.

“Is it going to be a hard game? Yes, it is. Have they got some world-class players? Yes, they ‌have.

“But you are at the World Cup, the biggest sporting event in the world. If we deal with that and bring the appropriate, positive ​emotions to the game, I think we’ve a chance.”

Published on Jun 21, 2026