Egypt made it to the knockout round of the 2026 World Cup after a dramatic 1-1 draw against Iran.
The Pharaohs had already been guaranteed entry into the Round of 32 ahead of kick-off in Seattle after favourable overnight results.
Mahmoud Saber opened the scoring for Egypt in the fifth minute before Ramin Rezaeian levelled on 14 minutes.
The match seemed headed for a draw before Shojae Khalilzadeh scored the winner in added time.
However, the goal was disallowed upon VAR review for offside.
Iran now face an anxious wait to see if they will progress as one of the third-placed teams.
The draw means Egypt finish second with five points, behind Belgium who thrashed New Zealand 5-1 in Group G.
Egypt thus qualified for the knockout stage of the World Cup for the first time in history.
Egypt broke the deadlock after a slick move with Mohamed Salah at its centre as his trademark left-footed attempt eventually fell to Saber, whose tame effort slipped through Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand.
Iran continued to fight and Taremi almost immediately won a penalty which was well saved by Mostafa Shobeir. The Egypt goalkeeper then produced another diving stop, only to see Rezaeian equalise on the rebound.
The result saw Egypt set up a Round of 32 a clash with Australia.
“It's something unbelievable, it's history,” Egypt goalkeeper Shobeir, who saved Taremi's early penalty, said. “We will celebrate tonight and then starting from tomorrow we are going to start watching Australia.”
Iran are third on three points and must wait for confirmation that they will go through.
“I feel sad, but we have hope – human beings always have hope,” Taremi said before he criticised the travel restrictions on the Iranian team which mean they will shortly have to travel back to their Mexican base.
Meanwhile, Belgium coach Rudi Garcia lauded his senior players for leading the charge in their 5-1 rout of New Zealand.
Leandro Trossard, 31, struck twice as Belgium thrashed New Zealand to clinch top spot in Group G and advance to the Round of 32. Kevin De Bruyne (34), Romelu Lukaku (33) and Alexis Saelemaekers (27) were also on the scoresheet.
Belgium finished above Egypt on goal difference after both sides ended with five points each.
Garcia said his side were more efficient than in their games against Egypt and Iran.
“This is what the oldies did tonight, quote unquote,” he added. “Now, we haven't won anything yet but we moved on to the next phase, but thank goodness we had a difference of four goals and that gave us the opportunity to be first of the group …
“We can't say that we are fully into it but we are growing into it. We're gaining momentum. We'll see against whom we will be playing in the round of 32, but we will relish this first victory.”
Asked whether criticism about the team's age had been a motivation, Garcia said: “No, I did not read it, but this is what I've heard from France, from Belgium and this is not a source of motivation honestly.
“I trust my players and that's why my team is the way it is right now.”
