Evergreen El-Hadary

After a 28-year wait, Egypt are back at a World Cup for Russia 2018 - and goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary is set to make history as the oldest player ever to appear in the competition. 

The timeless stopper, who turned 45 last January, has his sights on the record of Colombian goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon, who raised the bar when he took part in the previous World Cup in Brazil at the age of 43. 

📈 Most international games (Players at #Russia2018):
158 🇪🇬EL HADARY
152 🇪🇸Ramos
150 🇵🇹Cristiano Ronaldo
148 🇲🇽Guardado
146 🇲🇽Márquez
143 🇦🇷Mascherano
142 🇵🇦Gabriel Gómez
135 🇸🇦Osama Hawsawsi
👉: https://t.co/GviUOClC9y#EGY #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/AUPs4biD0z

— playmakerstats (@playmaker_EN) June 12, 2018

After tomorrow night's opening game between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia, Egypt will look to get their World Cup show on the road with a result against Uruguay. The Pharoahs are still sweating on the fitness of star forward Mohamed Salah, injured in Liverpool's Champions League final loss to Real Madrid. 

"Now I'm feeling better," Salah said on Saturday. "I'm hopeful of being able to play in our first game, but this will depend on how I feel when the day comes around."

Check out @playmaker_EN for all your World Cup stats this summer - and be sure to visit thefinalball.com to keep abreast of every kick in Russia. Click here for the running order.