Carlos Queiroz names Egypt 40-man provisional squad for Afcon Cameroon 2021 as Zamalek midfielder Tarek Hamed left out
Egypt boss coach Carlos Queiroz has named a 40-man provisional squad on Sunday 19th December ahead of the African major tournament in Cameroon early next month. The 2021 Afcon takes place between 9 January and 6 February due to delay from the coronavirus pandemic.
According to a statement by the Egyptian Football Association (EFA), the final 23-man squad will be announced by the end of December.
The most decorated Afcon side Egypt who have lifted the ultimate a record seven times are placed in Group D along with West African giants Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau and Sudan.
Zamalek midfielder Tarek Hamed is the prominent absentee in the preliminary squad as he remains out-of-favor for the Egyptian boss. That comes with no big news for Egyptian fans after Hamed having been dropped from FIFA Arab Cup in Qatar.
Queiroz also dropped Smouha winger Hussein Faisal while Ghazl El-Mahalla’s defender Mohamed Fathallah got his first international call up in Sunday’s announced squad.
Egypt’s initial Afcon squad comes out a day after been beaten to a third place by Qatar in the FIFA Arab Cup. They lost to Tunisia in the semifinals before entering into third place with high hopes.
Liverpool star winger Mohamed Salah, Arsenal’s midfielder Mohamed Elneny and Aston Villa winger Mahmoud ‘Trezeguet’ Hassan are the prominent names among the foreign-based players called up for next year’s AFCON.
Queiroz didn’t call any of the foreign-based players for the Arab Cup given the tournament falls outside of the normal international calendar.
He said repeatedly before the Arab Cup that he would use it to try out new strategies and inject fresh blood before the AFCON and an anticipated World Cup qualifying playoff in March.
Under the guidance of Queiroz, Egypt recently secured a place in the final qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, which will be played next March in a two-legged form against another group leader.
Squad in full details
Goalkeepers: Mohamed El-Shennawy (Ahly), Mohamed Fawzy (Ismaily), Mohamed Sobhy (Farco), Mahmoud Gad (Enppi)
Defenders: Ayman Ashraf (Ahly), Ahmed Fatouh (Zamalek), Ahmed Hegazy (Ittihad of Jeddah), Akram Tawfik (Ahly), Mahmoud ‘El-Wensh’ Hamdi (Zamalek), Mahmoud Alaa (Zamalek), Ahmed Yassin (NBE), Mohamed Hany (Ahly), Mohamed Abdel-Monem (Future FC), Mohamed Hamdy (Pyramids FC), Mohamed Fathallah (Ghazl El-Mahalla), Ahmed Ramadan Beckham (Smouha), Marawan Dawoud (Enppi)
Midfielders: Omar Kamal (Future FC), Amr El-Sulaya (Ahly), Mostafa Fathi (Zamalek), Mohamed Magdi “Afsha” (Ahly), Emam Ashour (Zamalek), Mohamed Elneny (Arsenal), Abdallah El-Said (Pyramids FC), Ramadan Sobhy (Pyramids FC), Ahmed Sayed Zizo (Zamalek), Ibrahim Adel (Pyramids FC), Ahmed Refaat (Future FC), Nabil ‘Dunga’ Emad (Pyramids FC), Hamdy Fathy (Ahly), Mohanad Lasheen (Talae El-Geish)
Forwards: Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Mostafa Mohamed (Galatasaray), Omar Marmoush (Stuttgart), Marwan Hamdy (Smouha), Ahmed “Kouka” Hassan (Konyaspor), Ahmed Yasser Rayyan (Altay), Mahmoud ‘Trezeguet’ Hassan (Aston Villa), Mohamed Sherif (Ahly).
