Egypt and Malawi set for decisive Africa Cup of Nations qualifying double-header

Egypt head coach Ali Maher will hold a news conference on Thursday ahead of the national team’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifying meeting with Malawi.

Maher will be joined by defender Karim Hafez at 18:30 to discuss the match. Egypt will then train at 19:00, with the opening 15 minutes made available to the media.

Malawi’s head coach is scheduled to speak to reporters at 20:30, before his side trains at 21:00. The first 15 minutes of that session will also be open to the media.

Egypt’s squad includes the return of Al Ahly goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy, as well as Mahmoud Hamdy “El Wensh”, Nasser Maher and Pyramids duo Mahmoud Marei and Karim Hafez.

Modern Sport forward Mahmoud Mamdouh has received his first call-up after becoming the Egyptian Premier League’s leading scorer with eight goals.

Emam Ashour remains out for technical reasons, while Abdulaziz El Balouty has been omitted following El Shenawy’s return. Omar Fayed is also absent after being called up during the previous international window as cover for the injured Hamdy Fathy.

Hamdy Fathy, who plays for Al-Wakrah, misses out because of injury. Al Ahly midfielder Ali Mahmoud, who made his first international appearance during the previous break, is also not included.

Mahmoud Hassan “Trezeguet” returns to the squad after recovering from the injury that kept him out of the last international window. Konyaspor striker Mostafa Mohamed continues to be left out, having last featured for Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations in January.

Egypt squad:

Goalkeepers: Mohamed El Shenawy, Mehdy Soliman, Mostafa Shobeir, Mohamed Alaa.

Defenders: Mahmoud Hamdy “El Wensh”, Hossam Abdelmaguid, Rami Rabia, Mohamed Abdelmonem, Mahmoud Marei, Mohamed Hany, Karim Hafez, Ahmed Fattouh, Tarek Alaa.

Midfielders: Marwan Attia, Mohand Lasheen, Mahmoud Saber, Mohamed Shehata, Nasser Maher, Ibrahim Adel, Mahmoud Hassan “Trezeguet”, Ahmed Sayed Zizo, Haitham Hassan.

Forwards: Mohamed Salah, Omar Marmoush, Hamza Abdelkarim, Mahmoud Mamdouh.

Egypt will face Malawi on 13 and 17 November in the third and fourth rounds of Africa Cup of Nations qualifying.

The teams are in Group B alongside Angola and South Sudan. Egypt lead the section with four points, ahead of Angola on goal difference. Malawi are third with three points, while South Sudan are bottom without a point.

Egypt began the qualifying campaign with a goalless draw against Angola in Cairo before recording a 5-0 away win over South Sudan.