Brighton’s Younes Ibrahim targeted by Egypt as Wail Riyad reveals youth talent plans

Wail Riyad says he was the first coach to contact Brighton player Younes Ibrahim and believes several members of Egypt’s Under-20 squad are ready to make the step up to the senior team.

Ibrahim helped Brighton score their first goal against Lithuania’s Kauno Zalgiris in the Conference League, prompting suggestions that he could be called up by Egypt’s senior side.

The player is eligible to represent four countries. He has Egyptian nationality through his parents, Moroccan nationality through his grandmother, and is also Australian and English.

Speaking to On Sport, Riyad said: “When I initially took charge of the 2005 team, I held a closed training camp and called up 40 dual-nationality players with the former Egyptian Football Association board.”

He added: “I was the first coach to speak to Younes Ibrahim, the Brighton player, and his agent, and I called him up. However, a few days before he was due to arrive, he would apologise for not coming because of injury or because he had received a call-up from Australia.”

Riyad also recalled the discovery of Sweden-based Younes Al-Mallah, who started for Egypt in the North Africa qualifiers.

Under Riyad, Egypt’s youth team won the North Africa qualifiers and qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations scheduled to take place in Ghana next February. The tournament will provide qualification for the FIFA Under-20 World Cup.

Riyad urged Egypt manager Hossam Hassan to consider a number of his players, naming Mahmoud Salah, Mohamed Hamdy, Omar El-Azab, Eyad Medhat, Mohannad El-Shamy and goalkeeper Omar Abdel Aziz.

He singled out left-back Mohannad El-Shamy, saying: “Mohannad is ready to play for the senior national team. He was an ideal solution for Al Ahly to address their problem at left-back before they signed Tewfik Mohamed.”

Riyad also linked El-Shamy with the progress of Hamza Abdelkarim. “Mohannad El-Shamy was a major reason for Hamza Abdelkarim turning professional because of the many crosses he delivered that contributed to Hamza’s goals,” he said.

Asked about comparisons between Egypt and Morocco, Riyad said they were not appropriate because Morocco traditionally has a large migrant population and many of its players are based in Europe, whereas Egyptians moving to Europe are rare.

Only three overseas-based players were with him for the North Africa qualifiers: Mohamed Haitham from Spain, Younes Al-Mallah from Sweden and Adham Karim, who plays in Belgium. Bilal Attia and Hamza Abdelkarim, both based in Spain, were also expected to join the squad.

Egypt finished top of the North Africa group after beating Algeria, Tunisia and Libya, while losing to Morocco.

Riyad said all the youth players train with their senior club teams, but only Mahmoud Salah, before his move to Al Ahly, Mohamed Samir Konta at Ismaily and Mohamed Abdel Basir Sharqia at ENPPI had been given regular first-team opportunities.

“I hope all the players play regularly for their first teams,” he said. “The clubs think about their own interests and not the interests of the national-team coach.”