Barcelona believes that Hamza Abdel Karim could be part of the first team during the next season, amid conviction within the club that the Egyptian striker possesses different qualities that the team currently lacks.
Hamza Abdel Karim
Club: Barcelona
According to what was reported by the Spanish newspaper "Sport", the officials of the Catalan club do not expect the player to have a major role with Barcelona Athletic, but rather view him as an option that could benefit the first team under the leadership of Hans Flick.
Hamza, who is 18 years old, is distinguished by being a traditional outright striker, relying on physical strength, playing with his back to the goal, and continuous work inside the penalty area, which are qualities not currently available in Barcelona's attacking options.
The club's management believes that the Egyptian striker could form a solution as a second or third option during the next season, especially given that Barcelona has not yet finalized a new striker deal, with Argentine Julian Alvarez remaining one of the most prominent targets for strengthening the forward line.
Although the idea of sending him on loan is still on the table to gain more experience, this option does not have priority within the club at the present time.
Hamza's participation with the Egyptian national team in the 2026 World Cup increased his stock within Barcelona, after participating in 4 matches during the tournament.
Expectations indicated that the player's role in the tournament would be honorary in order to gain experience, but he succeeded in exploiting the minutes he got and left positive impressions during his participations with the national team.
Hamza is scheduled to join the first team's pre-season preparations on July 13, although he is expected to get some rest after a busy summer that began with playing in the Youth Champions League final against Real Madrid, before immediately joining the Egyptian national team camp and participating in the World Cup.
The Egyptian striker enjoys great appreciation within Barcelona, which sees him as a project for the future, despite the club's conviction that he still needs to develop in many technical aspects in the coming years.