Following his side’s draw with Iran that earned them a first-ever FIFA World Cup knockout qualification, Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said that superstar player Mohamed Salah will be assessed after he asked to be substituted during the match.
Salah’s fitness is a concern ahead of the knockout phase as he was replaced 12 minutes into the second half. Now, the coach has said that it is too early to determine the extent of the issue. Salah was the star for Egypt against New Zealand in their only win so far at the tournament.
Telling beIN Sports, Hossam said, “He asked to come off. If a player asks to be substituted, it means he felt something.”
“We will make sure what the problem is. We will assess him,” he added.
Hassan also said that left-back Ahmed Fatouh will also undergo evaluation after suffering an injury, while being optimistic that their midfielder Hamdi Fathi will recover in time for Egypt’s round of 32 match against Australia on Friday, after he gave the Iran clash a miss.
Despite the fitness concerns surrounding multiple players, Egypt’s coach enjoys confidence in his “warriors”, with his team finishing second in the group with a win, draw and loss, behind Belgium on the basis of goal difference. He said that he has “complete confidence in everyone in the squad”.
Egypt manager hails his ‘warriors’ after qualifying for the next round
Egypt manager Hossam Hassan hailed his players as ‘warriors’ after the African side qualified for the Round of 32 at the FIFA World Cup 2026 after a draw against Iran.
“I have warriors. I have Egyptian players who are worthy of the trust placed in them,” he said.
“I do not worry about missing players. I have complete confidence in everyone in this squad. If I worried every time we had an injury, then I would not be fit to coach the Egypt national team,” he added.
Hossam was also happy with Egypt’s historic progress to WC knockouts, saying, “We will prepare ourselves, work hard and do everything we can for what is coming next.”
Iran, meanwhile, remains in contention for a place in the knockout rounds as one of the best third-placed teams. They have three points after having drawn all their matches.
(With ANI inputs)
