Gharib Names 21-Man Squad For U-23 AFCON

Egypt's U-23 national team head coach Shawky Gharib named his 21-man squad for the upcoming U-23 Africa Cup of Nations, to be held in Egypt.

The Pharaohs were pooled in Group A alongside Mali, Ghana, and Cameroon, while holders Nigeria were pooled in Group B, alongside Ivory Coast, Zambia, and South Africa.

The tournament is set to be held from November 8 to November 22 as the eight national teams participating in this tournament are set to play all their clashes at Cairo International Stadium and Al Salam Stadium.

The squad witnessed the absence of one of the major players in the national team; Al Ahly midfielder Mohamed Mahmoud due to his ACL injury,

Gharib ruled out Al Ahly keeper Mostafa Shoubir, Ahmed Hamdy, Mohamed Sadek and Naser Mansi from the final squad.

The Egyptian national team managed to rank third at the 2011 U-23 AFCON, held in Morocco after delivering an illustrious performance. The Pharaohs exited the 2015 tournament from the group stage in Senegal.

In June, Egypt astonished the whole world after hosting the 2019 Africa Cup of Nation as 24 teams participated in that tournament for the first time.

21-Man Squad is as follows:

Goalkeepers: Omar Radwan (El Gouna), Omar Salah (Smouha), Mohamed Sobhi (Zamalek).

Defenders: Osama Galal (ENPPI), Mahmoud Marei (Wadi Degla), Ahmed Ramadan (Wadi Degla), Mahmoud El-Gazzar (El-Gouna), Mohamed Abdelsalam (Zamalek), Ahmed AboulFetouh (Smouha), Karim El-Eraki (Al Masry).

Midfielders: Akram Tawfik (El Gouna), Ammar Hamdi (Al Ahly), Nasser Maher (Smouha), Ghanam Mohamed (Entag El-Harby), Ramadan Sobhi (Al Ahly SC), Emam Ashour (Zamalek).

Forwards: Mostafa Mohamed (Zamalek), Salah Mohsen (Al Ahly), Ahmed Yasser Rayan (El-Gouna), Taher Mohamed Taher (Arab Contractors).