Belgium were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw against Egypt in an entertaining but physical Group G opener on Monday evening.
Egypt made the brighter start and took the lead through Emam Ashour, whose powerful strike from the edge of the area found the bottom corner for his first international goal.
Belgium eventually responded late in the second half when Romelu Lukaku’s introduction off the bench immediately caused problems, with Mohamed Hany turning the ball into his own net under pressure from the striker.
The encounter was fiercely contested from start to finish, with more than 30 fouls committed between both sides as neither team managed to fully control the rhythm of the game.
Despite sharing the points, both nations will feel they had opportunities to claim victory.
Belgium created the first opening after seven minutes when Kevin De Bruyne fired narrowly wide from outside the box.
The early stages were littered with fouls and bookings, with Timothy Castagne cautioned for a challenge on Mohamed Salah before Marwan Ateya also went into the referee’s book for bringing down Nathan Ngoy.
Egypt capitalised on their momentum in the 19th minute as Ashour unleashed a fierce low strike beyond Thibaut Courtois. Belgium enjoyed large spells of possession afterwards, but Egypt’s organised defence restricted them to very few clear openings.
Courtois was called into action midway through the first half, producing a low save to deny Mostafa Zico, before Ahmed El Fotouh received a booking for stopping Jérémy Doku during a dangerous counterattack.
Belgium struggled to create meaningful chances before the interval, with Egypt frequently disrupting play through aggressive pressing and tactical fouls. Doku came closest for the Red Devils in stoppage time, but his volley flew over the bar.
Courtois then made another important save moments before half-time, denying Omar Marmoush from a tight angle to keep the deficit at one goal heading into the break.
Belgium returned for the second half with a slight tactical adjustment, pushing Doku into a more advanced position while shifting Charles De Ketelaere out wide.
The winger quickly became influential, winning a dangerous free-kick on the edge of the area after being fouled by Ateya.
De Bruyne stepped up and rattled the woodwork with the resulting effort. Courtois was then required again, this time tipping away Salah’s header before Ashour failed to hit the target on the rebound.
Belgium introduced Nicolas Raskin and Maxim De Cuyper in place of Amadou Onana and Castagne as they searched for an equaliser.
Egypt nearly doubled their lead on the hour mark, but Ngoy produced excellent recovery defending to deny Marmoush a clear finish.
Doku later appealed for a penalty after weaving through the Egyptian defence, but the referee waved play on. Youri Tielemans then came close with a well-struck volley that drifted narrowly wide, before De Bruyne squandered Belgium’s best chance of the match after miscuing an effort straight at Mostafa Shobeir.
Lukaku was eventually introduced despite recent criticism over his fitness, and the striker made an immediate impact. Within seconds of coming on, he slid into the six-yard box and forced Hany into conceding an own goal as Belgium finally found a way through.
Egypt responded with several substitutions, while Belgium continued to push for a winner. Shobeir produced an excellent save late on to deny Brandon Mechele’s header, before Lukaku wasted another promising opportunity by steering a late header off target from Raskin’s cross.
Both sides pushed until the closing moments, but neither could find a decisive goal. Mechele headed over from a Tielemans delivery with the final chance of the game as the contest ended level.
