Hossam Hassan, the head coach of the Egyptian national team, emphasized that his team is not affected by the absence of any player.
Hossam Hassan
Club: Egypt
The Egyptian national team defeated South Sudan 5-0 in the second round of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Hossam Hassan said at the press conference: "I am not making excuses. The Egyptian national team may be affected by absences, but it does not rely on any single player."
He added, "All players are very important to us, but it is not acceptable for a country with a population of 120 million to have its national team depend on one player."
He continued, "We are affected and saddened by the absences, but our duty is to find solutions among the other loyal players who complement the national team."
Mohamed Salah, the Trabzonspor player, and Mohamed Abdelmonem, the Nice player, were absent from the Egyptian national team for the match due to the game being played on an artificial turf pitch.
Egypt's goals were scored by Omar Marmoush (two goals), Ziko, Ibrahim Adel, and Hamza Al-Karim.
Egypt raised their points total to four in the group after drawing 0-0 with Angola in the first round.
