World Cup cheat sheet: Hope for Mo Salah's magic and prepare for Ronaldo's abs

Ready, set, GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLL!

Prepare your most wooden spoons for the first full day of action at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The Friday schedule kicks off with a group stage matchup between Egypt and Uruguay that features two of the most dynamic attackers in the world: Mo Salah (who will begin on the bench) and Luis Suarez. The trio of games concludes with as high-profile a clash as we’re going to see in the group stage: Spain vs. Portugal.

Here is everything you need to know to enjoy Match Day 2. Please stay tuned as the day rolls on for the final scores and must-see highlights.

World Cup schedule For Match Day 2

Egypt vs. Uruguay (Time: 8 a.m ET; TV: FOX Sports 1 and Telemundo; Livestream: Fox Sports Go, Telemundo Deportes en vivo )

Morocco vs. Iran (Time: 11 a.m. ET; TV: FOX and Telemundo; Livestream: FOX Sports Go, Telemundo Deportes en vivo )

Portugal vs. Spain (Time: 2 p.m. ET; TV: FOX and Telemundo; Livestream, Fox Sports Go, Telemundo Deportes en vivo)

Brace yourself for Mo Salah’s magic and Ronaldo’s abs.

Let’s get caught up on the rise of the “Egyptian King.”

Salah, who suffered a shoulder injury while playing for Liverpool in the Champions League final, will start Egypt’s opening game on the bench. Egypt coach Héctor Cúper has previously said that “I can almost assure you 100 percent he will play.” Whether or not you’re rooting for Egypt, the World Cup will be better off if that estimation is accurate.

Italy v Uruguay: Group D - 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil — Luis Suarez of Uruguay and Giorgio Chiellini of Italy react after a clash during the 2014 World Cup.

As long as Cristiano Ronaldo has a Portugal shirt on, he is a danger to opponents. Lose track of him even for a moment, and he decides the game. By the time Ronaldo has that Portugal pulled off, it’s too late. He’s celebrating a goal. And while you’re busy tabulating his abdominal muscles, he’s likely to go nab another.

18 – Cristiano Ronaldo was directly involved in more goals than any other player in the 2018 European World Cup qualifiers (18), scoring 15 goals & assisting a further three. Talisman #OptaWCPreview pic.twitter.com/15Esa3DAAQ
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 11, 2018

Get your World Cup news and views here! Read all about it!

Need help feeling some World Cup feelings? Please turn to “Here’s how to get excited about the World Cup, even if your team isn’t in Russia,” by Ritika Bhasker.
Read SB Nation’s Zito Madu on the impossibility of removing the World Cup from the real world.
OK, now you’re ready to pick a team? Let us pair your palette with the perfect squad.
Russia walloped Saudi Arabia in the opener and Kim McCauley explained how losing a star player was the improbable key to success.
Want your World Cup content in podcast form? Check out Gimlet’s “We Came To Win” series on the World Cup.
The opening words of Brian Phillips’ World Cup preview at The New Yorker are “Ladies and gentlemen, start your psychic octopuses”, and you should need no more convincing to read more of the words that follow.
Also, uh, Spain just fired its coach. Yes, they are among the tournament favorites. And, of course, Pique is citing Michigan’s 1989 men’s hoops team as an inspiration in this trying time.

Universidad de Michigan. Baloncesto. 1989. Campeón de la NCAA. No sería la primera vez que ocurre. Todos unidos, ahora más que nunca.
— Gerard Piqué (@3gerardpique) June 13, 2018

Want a World Cup meme? The World Cup already has a meme!

Love the fraught relationship dynamics of the Distracted Boyfriend meme? But worry that it doesn’t come burdened with enough oppression and corruption? Well, the 2018 World Cup has just the meme for you! It’s Vladimir Putin shrugging while hanging with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia and FIFA president Gianni Infantino.