Egypt captain Mohamed Salah has been named in the country’s preliminary 27-man squad for this summer’s FIFA World Cup.
The 33-year-old forward is expected to lead the Pharaohs at the tournament as Egypt intensify preparations for the global competition. Salah heads into the tournament after an impressive international career, having scored 67 goals in 115 appearances for his country.
He is joined in the squad by Omar Marmoush and highly-rated 18-year-old Hamza Abdelkarim, who currently plays for Barcelona’s Under-19 side and is seeking his first senior international appearance.
However, Nantes striker Mostafa Mohamed was left out of the squad announced by Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan.
Hassan is expected to trim the squad by one player following a friendly against Russia in Cairo on May 28 in order to meet FIFA’s requirement for a final 26-man squad.
Egypt are also scheduled to face Brazil in another warm-up game in Cleveland on June 6 as preparations continue ahead of the tournament.
The Pharaohs have been drawn in Group G of the World Cup and will begin their campaign against Belgium on June 15 before taking on New Zealand on June 22 and Iran on June 27.
The expanded 48-team FIFA World Cup, hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, will run from June 11 to July 19.
