Egypt coach Hassan discusses reported fallout with Salah

Hossam Hassan Coach of Egypt during the 2024 FIFA Series Egypt Edition match between Egypt and New Zealand held at New Administrative Capital Stadium in Cairo, Egypt on 22 March 2024 ©Weam MostafaBackpagePix

by Austin Ditlhobolo

Wednesday May 15, 2024. 15:00

Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan has discussed claims of a fallout between him and captain Mohamed Salah.

Hassan took charge of the Pharaohs after the 2023 AFCON finals and he was in charge of the team’s friendly matches in March with Salah having been excluded from the squad due to injury.

The 57-year-old tactician will soon announce the Pharaohs squad set to play back-to-back 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Burkina Faso and Guinea-Bissau respectively in June 2024.

“The media have the right to know what we are doing to achieve our goals and we want to clarify everything before the start of the next international break,” Hassan said on King Fut.

“The national team camp starts on May 28th, and we aim to qualify for the 2026 World Cup. We will only include players with the passion, enthusiasm and spirit to play in the Egyptian national team.

“Mohamed Salah is one of the best players in the world ever, which is an indisputable fact. There is no rift between me and him. We communicate with him normally.”

Salah has scored 56 goals in 98 matches for Egypt and only record-holder Hossam Hassan has netted more goals for the Pharaohs having netted 69 times from 177 games.