Egypt coach says Barcelona’s Hamza Abdelkarim is unlikely to play at 2027 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations

Egypt Under-20s coach Ahmed Raouf says Barcelona forward Hamza Abdelkarim is unlikely to feature at the 2027 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations, but hopes the player will be available for the Youth World Cup.

Egypt secured the North Africa Under-20 Championship and qualification for the continental finals by beating Algeria 2-0 in their final match.

“Hamza Abdelkarim’s participation in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations is unlikely, but we are looking forward to having him involved in the Youth World Cup,” Raouf told the programme Here Cairo, presented by Mohamed Hafez on On Sport.

Egypt needed only a draw against Algeria to win the regional competition and qualify for the tournament in Ghana, but Raouf said his side had targeted victory.

“A draw against Algeria would have been enough for us to win the North Africa Championship and qualify for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, but we played for the win,” he said.

“On the other hand, not a single person in the world expected Libya to beat Morocco.”

Raouf admitted he had been concerned after Egypt’s defeat by Morocco left them facing a decisive final fixture against Algeria.

“I was extremely worried after losing to Morocco and then having to play Algeria in a crucial match,” he added.

The 2027 Africa Cup of Nations will be hosted by Ghana in February 2027.

The North Africa qualifying tournament was held in Egypt, in Ismailia, at the Suez Canal Authority Stadium and Ismailia Stadium.

The result gave Egypt their fourth title in the competition, following previous victories in 2006, 2008 and 2012. They have qualified for the 2027 African finals for a third consecutive edition and for the 20th time overall.

Egypt began their campaign with a 2-0 win against Libya and followed it with a 2-1 victory over Tunisia. They then lost 2-0 to Morocco before defeating Algeria 2-0 in the final round.

They finished top of the table with nine points, two ahead of Morocco, who finished runners-up and also qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Algeria were third on four points, ahead of Libya on goal difference, while Tunisia finished bottom with three points.

The title marked Egypt’s first North Africa Championship triumph since they finished third in 2023 and runners-up in 2024.

It was also the first managerial trophy of Wael Riad’s coaching career.