Ahly's defender Ahmed Fathi. Photo: alahlyegypt.com
Ahly's international players departed the team's current training camp in the UAE on Monday morning to join the Egyptian national team camp amid preparations for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The Pharaohs will kick off Group G of the Nations Cup qualifiers at home against Kenya on 14 November before meeting Comoros away from home four days later.
"After the technical staff's decision to cancel a friendly match in the UAE and after calls with the national team officials, the international players departed the camp early to join the national team," reads a statement on Ahly's official website.
Late last month, Egypt's newly appointed coach Hossam El-Badry called up a preliminary 32-man squad for the camp ahead of the Kenya and Comoros matches.
The national team, who will play a friendly match against Liberia on Thursday, started the gathering with some players last Monday for just three days.
The local-based players are supposed to start a closed camp on Tuesday before being joined by their fellow footballers based abroad on 10 November.
The Ahly players who were called for the camp are Mohamed El-Shennawi, Ahmed Fathi, Mohamed Hani, Mahmoud Wahid, Rami Rabia, Amr El-Sulaya, Hamdi Fathi, Magdi Afsha and Hussein El-Shahat.
Ahly's central defender Ayman Ashraf was first called up for the camp before being replaced by Pyramids FC's Ahmed Ayman Mansour on Sunday.
Under El-Badry, Egypt is competing in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers alongside the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
The former Ahly player and coach El-Badry is the first Egyptian manager in Egypt's hot seat in four years following Argentinean tactician Hector Cuper (2015-2018) and Javier Aguirre (2018-2019).
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