Al Ahly hit by absences before Egypt Cup tie against Egypt Telecommunications

​Al Ahly will go into their Egypt Cup round of 32 clash against Egypt Telecommunications missing a large group of key players, adding extra difficulty to Saturday night’s knockout test.

The team will be without Karim Fouad, Ahmed Abdelkader and Moroccan winger Achraf Bencherki, all sidelined through injury.

The situation is further complicated by the uncertainty over playmaker Mohamed Magdy Afsha and defender Ahmed Ramadan Beckham, who are both suffering from muscle discomfort and have yet to be cleared for action. In addition, Al Ahly cannot count on their internationals currently with Egypt at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, nor on several foreign professionals away on duty.

Club doctor Ahmed Gaballah explained that Beckham has been struggling with lower back pain and was granted a rest from Thursday’s main training session.

He said: “Beckham underwent a physiotherapy session today at the Nasr City branch, and his condition will be assessed to determine when he can return to full training.”

A source also told Kooora that Taher Mohamed Taher and Afsha have only just returned to group training in a gradual way after injury, and their availability for the We match will be decided on Friday. Despite the setbacks, the Red Devils completed their primary training session at Nasr City on Thursday as they try to prepare a competitive line-up for the cup encounter.