In a post-game presser following missing out on a bronze at the 2025 AFCON after the Pharaohs fell 4-2 to Nigeria on penalties in the third-place decider, Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said, “I hope to see more players in my squad competing in European leagues in the future.”
The 60-year-old tactician said he was proud of his team's performance, lavishing praise on his domestic league players, who make up 25 out of the 28-man squad.
“We only have Mohamed Salah, Omar Marmoush and Mostafa Mohamed playing in Europe. We played the tournament with a majority of domestic league players, and I am pleased with their performance,” Hassan noted.
“We played the Nigeria game whilst missing half of our squad due to injuries and suspensions,” noted Hassan.
He lamented that the technical staff learned about a CAF decision to suspend two of the players late on Friday evening after he reviewed the game plan for the Nigeria clash.
“We were affected by the absences, but we also saw some new faces emerge today,” said Hassan, who used half a dozen faces from the bench to stand in for starters in Saturday's loss to the Super Eagles.
Egypt reached the semifinals after defeating Côte d’Ivoire in the quarterfinals, but were eliminated by Senegal in the last four.
Senegal will face hosts Morocco in the final on Sunday.
Check the AFCON matches and standings
Check the AFCON stats
(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)