Rwanda 0-1 Egypt: African Champions Pull Out Slim Victory

Egypt beat Rwanda 1-0 in a 2010 World Cup qualifying match in Kigali Saturday afternoon to sustain the pressure on Group Three leaders Algeria.

Skipper Ahmed Hassan again underlined his fine form in front of goal with a 67th minute match winner.

The Pharaohs have now recorded seven points from four matches and await the result of the other group game between Algeria and Zambia in Blida on Sunday to know if they have covered some lost ground on their regional rivals.

The first half was a drab affair as Egypt, condemned to win this match to keep alive any hopes of securing a place at next year's World Cup in South Africa, failed to find their way past a resolute Rwanda defence.
 
Al Ahly playmaker Mohamed Aboutrika was dropped from the original starting line-up after he picked up an injury in the warm-up.

There were also competitive debuts for Petrojet striker Al-Sayed Hamdi and Lierse forward Mohamed Al-Gabbas, who will replace the injured Hamdi.

Egypt had a couple of half-chances through a Hassan shot and a Hosny Abd-Rabou header but their biggest opportunity of the first 45 minutes fell to Ahmed Raouf on 34 minutes.

He pounced on a weak headed back-pass by a Rwanda defender but his acrobatic effort went wide off the mark.

Even in the second half, the Egyptians showed they missed their top strikers like Amr Zaki, Mido, Emad Motoeb and the banned Mohamed Zidan, as they continued to lack the cutting edge.

However, as the minutes ticked by, the 34-year-old Hassan grabbed the the winner after a goalmouth scramble and kept Egypt in the hunt for World Cup glory.

Samm Audu, Goal.com