Shawky Gharib meets Wael Reyad to discuss Egypt Under-20s’ North Africa qualifiers

Shawky Gharib, the Football Association’s technical director, has met Wael Reyad, head coach of Egypt’s Under-20 national team, to discuss the squad’s preparations for the upcoming North Africa qualifiers.

The meeting took place at the Football Association’s headquarters in 6th of October City, with the governing body outlining the discussions on its official website.

Gharib and Reyad reviewed the team’s programme and training plans for the next stage as Egypt prepare to compete in the North Africa qualifiers in September. The tournament will serve as a qualifying competition for the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations.

As part of those preparations, the Under-20 side will hold a closed training camp at the National Teams Centre in 6th of October City from 1 to 9 July.

The camp forms part of the build-up to the regional qualifiers, with the team continuing to assess its readiness through a series of international friendlies. Egypt played two matches against Jordan at the beginning of the current month, winning both games. They recorded a 3-0 victory in the first meeting before completing a 2-0 success in the second.

The side also faced Russia twice during a June training camp. Egypt won the opening friendly 3-1, but suffered a 5-2 defeat in the return fixture.

Before those matches, the Under-20 national team played two friendlies against Oman last month and won both games.

The qualifying campaign will be an important stage in Egypt’s route towards the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations. The top four teams at that tournament will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

The meeting between Gharib and Reyad focused on organising the squad’s work during the coming period, with the July camp scheduled to provide another opportunity for the coaching staff to continue preparations before the North Africa qualifiers begin in September.

Egypt’s recent results have included victories over Jordan and Oman, as well as a win against Russia, although the team’s second encounter with the Russian side ended in defeat. Those fixtures have provided the latest competitive tests for Reyad’s squad ahead of its next official assignment.

The Football Association has confirmed the details of the preparation programme as the Under-20 team works towards the regional qualifying tournament and the wider objective of reaching the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations. The competition will also determine the four teams that progress to the Under-20 World Cup.