India, July 11 -- Thousands of fans turned out to greet Egypt's national soccer team on its return home Friday after its World Cup adventure ended with a 3-2 loss to Argentina in the knockout stage of the tournament.

Crowds gathered at the El-Alamein airport, waving photos of star player Mohamed Salah and holding signs celebrating the team's achievements as they cheered the players' return.

Egypt made it to the last 16 teams in the tournament for the first time after beating Australia 4-2 on penalty kicks, led by Salah.

The players are expected to meet Saturday with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who thanked the team in a Facebook statement on Tuesday "for their honorable performance and for achieving an unprecedented milest...