A snap shot of Barcelona Egyptian Forward Hamza Abdelkarim speaking during an interview after the match. Photo courtesy of Barcelona Instagram.
Barcelona’s U19 side thrashed rivals Montecarlo 9-0 in Spain’s youth league.
The 18-year-old striker, who joined Barcelona Juvenil A on loan from Egyptian giants Ahly, netted three times in 15 minutes, emphatically marking his start.
“Thanks god. It is a great feeling of course. All the team did a good effort since the season start and despite of joining them in January, they gave me a warm welcome,” Abdelkarim said in an interview with the club’s official website after the game.
Nil Vicens opened the scoring after nine minutes before Abdelkarim doubled the lead with a header in the 16th.
He added a second with another header in the 27th and completed his hat-trick four minutes later.
“I am happy with the hat-trick and sure I did huge effort during the game, but also my teammates helped me during trainings as they saw my strengths and we all managed to make the best use of them during the match,” the Egyptian player explained.
“I could have scored four or five goals but finally thanks god,” he added.
Hamza said that adapting to the Spanish team wasn’t an easy mission after his arrival, but he managed to overcome it.
“The team’s playing style was different for me, so it was a must to adapt to reach this stage,” he said. “It is a great feeling, and I am happy and eager to achieve more with the team.”
The Egyptian rising star joined Barcelona on loan until 30 June, with an option to make the move permanent, which would see him become the first Egyptian player to sign for the Catalan club.
His appearances and goals have been delayed due to a muscle injury that sidelined him in the past weeks.
A product of Ahly’s youth academy, he made nine senior appearances for the Cairo side across all competitions.
At the international level, Abdelkarim has represented Egypt in youth competitions, helping the team win the 2024 UNAF U-17 tournament. He also scored twice at the 2025 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations.
He further impressed at the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar, scoring two goals and providing an assist as Egypt reached the last 16.
(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)
Short link: