The Pharaohs find themselves placed in Group C alongside Cape Verde, Mauritania, and Botswana for the upcoming tournament scheduled to be held in Morocco from 21 December, 2025, to 18 January, 2026.

Expressing confidence, Egypt coach Hossam Hassan has made it clear that the team's primary objective is to qualify for the Nations Cup and contend for the championship.

"Our group presents a tough challenge, but we are fully geared up for the AFCON qualifiers, with our sights set on clinching the title," emphasized Hossam Hassan.

Egypt will be without the services of Ahly’s classy midfielder Emam Ashour due to a knee injury sustained during the national team's training camp.

In addition, defender Mohamed Abdelmonem has been granted leave from the Pharaohs camp to attend to commitments with his new Ligue 1 outfit, Nice.

On a positive note, a number of key foreign-based players, including Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Nantes’ Mostafa Mohamed, have joined the training camp in Cairo, bolstering the Pharaohs' squad for the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

Wingers Mahmoud "Trezeguet" Hassan, Omar Marmoush, and defender Ahmed Hegazi have also been included in the squad.

The upcoming match against Cape Verde is poised to be a crucial starting point for coach Hossam Hassan in the continental competition as he seeks to rally the fans' support in pursuit of their mission before confronting Botswana in the subsequent round of qualifiers.

Egypt and Cape Verde last faced off in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, where they played out a 2-2 draw in the group stage of the prestigious tournament held in Cote d'Ivoire.

The top two teams from the 12 groups will advance to the prestigious tournament.

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