Hamza Abdelkarim #9

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The youngest player in this group by some distance, and one of the most exciting prospects in Egyptian football. He came through Al Ahly’s academy, played for Egypt at Under-17 level, and then joined Barcelona B during the winter transfer window on loan, with an option to buy. Abdelkarim, the first Egyptian player in the Catalan club’s history, has already started to make a name for himself with their Under-19A side, scoring five goals in seven league matches. His senior Egypt call-up this summer is clearly a gamble, but not a wild one. Hossam Hassan has left out more established forwards and kept a teenage striker who has barely started his senior career, but the attraction is obvious: Hamza, known as “The Egyptian Haaland”, is tall, mobile, and a natural penalty-box player in a squad that otherwise leans heavily on wide forwards and midfield runners for goals. He is unlikely to be asked to carry Egypt’s attack, but if the side needs a late body in the box, the youngest player in the squad may suddenly become extremely important.

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