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| Egypt captured their 3rd straight African Nations' Cup in 2010 |
Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.
Africa All-Time Team Ghana, Cameroon, Nigeria, South Africa,
Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Ivory Coast, Senegal,
North Africa, The Rest of Africa(excluding Cameroon, Senegal, Ghana, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Nigeria and North Africa).
African Born
Egypt has been a power house in African football since 1920's. They went to the Olympics in 1924, and until 1972, they went to most of the Olympics. The Pharaohs are also the most successful nation at the African Cup of Nations, winning the tournament a record 7 times. Between 2006 and 2010, they won three straight African Cup of Nations. While they were the best team in the African tournament, Egypt does not do well at the World Cup Finals. Although they were the first African country to play in the World Cup Finals, they only managed to qualify for two World Cup Finals. They went to the first World Cup Finals in 1934, but did not qualify for another World Cup Finals until 1990. In 1990, they managed two impressive draws against Holland and Ireland before losing 1-0 to England. They failed to qualify for the World Cup when Egypt dominated African Football between 2006 and 2010. Meanwhile, Al Ahly and Zamaluk are two of the best teams in African club football.
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| World Cup 1990 |
GK : Essam El-Hadary عصام كمال توفيق الحضري
EL-Hadary was the starting keeper for Egypt as it dominated African Cup of Nations. He won four African Cup of Nations: 1998, 2006, 2008 and 2010. He was chosen the best keeper in 2006, 2008 and 2010. He was a major player in Egypt's treble titles. At the age of 45, he became the oldest player ever to make ahis debut in a World Cup Finals history during Russia 2018. From 1996 to 2008, he played with Al Ahly. From 2008 onward, he played for many clubs, including briefly with FC Sion in Switzerland.
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| Essam El-Hadary |
GK: Ahmed Shobair أحمد عبد العزيز شوبير
Shobair played played for Al Ahly Sports club from 1980-1996. In his last season with the club, he won the Triple: Egyptian league, Cup and Arab Champions League. From 1984 to 1996, he earned 107 caps for Egypt. He went to two African Cup of Nations (1992 and 1994). In 1994, he was voted into the Team of the Tournaments. He also went to the 1990 World Cup Finals as Egypt's starting goalkeeper. He was voted the 5th Best African Footballer by France Football 1990.
GK: Adel Hekal محمد أحمد عادل هيكل
Adel Hekal was part of the team that won the 1959 Africa Cup of Nations. He was the best goalkeeper at the tournament. He also represented his country in the 1960 Summer Olympics. From 1950 to 1969, he played for Al -Ahly club. With the club, he was the star of the team as they beat Benfica 3-2 in 1963 and then, Barcelona FC 1-0. He was chosen by France's "African Games" magazine as one of the ten best African goalkeepers from 1958 to 1983. With Al-Ahly, he won the league title 10 times
RB/DM: Ahmed Fathy أحمد فتحي
Ahmed Fathy was a member of th Golden Generation that won three straight African Cup of Nations in 2006 2008, and 2010. In 2010, he was chosen for the All-Tournament Team. He had 120 caps and played in the 2018 World Cup Finals. In Egypt, he played mainly for Al Ahly. He also played in England briefly for Sheffield United F.C. and Hull City, and Umm Salal in Qatar.
RB: Ibrahim Hassan إبراهيم حسن حسين
Ibrahim Hassan is the twin brother of Hossam Hassan. Togather, they helped Egypt to qualify for the World Cup Finals in 1990. He earned 125 caps. The two of them also played for the same clubs almost through their career. They spent their prime with Al Ahly and went aboard together to play in Switzerland and Greece. He retired in 2006, but his brother played two seasons more. He had 131 caps.
Ibrahim Hassan is the twin brother of Hossam Hassan. Togather, they helped Egypt to qualify for the World Cup Finals in 1990. He earned 125 caps. The two of them also played for the same clubs almost through their career. They spent their prime with Al Ahly and went aboard together to play in Switzerland and Greece. He retired in 2006, but his brother played two seasons more. He had 131 caps.
CB: Wael Gomaa وائل جمعة
Wael Gomaa was one of the best African centreback of his generation and perhaps all-time. He was a key player for Egypt as they won three straight African Cup of
Nations in 2006, 2008 and 2010. At the international level, he had 117 caps for Egypt between 2001 and 2013. He spent most of his career with Al
Ahly. He won six CAF Champions' league and 8 domestic leagues with the club. He was nicknamed the "Rock".
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| Wael Gomaa |
Ibrahim Hassan
Ibrahim Hassan
Ibrahim Hassan
CB: Ibrahim Youssef إبراهيم يوسفIbrahim Youssef was widely regarded the best ever Egyptian defender. Nicknamed "Black Deer", he was a libero. He finished 2nd place at the African footballer of the year by France Football in 1984 and 3rd in 1985. He helped Zamalek win the African Cup twice in 1984 and 1985. With the national team, he went to the Olympics in 1984. He won a Gold medal at the All Africa Games Gold Medal 1987.
CB: Abdel-Zaher El-Saqqa عبد الظاهر السقا
Beginning his career in Egypt with El Mansoura in 1995. El-Saka was famous for his career in Turkey. Over there, he played with Denizlispor, Gençlerbirliği, Konyaspor and Eskişehirspor. He has Turkish citizenship with the name Abdel Zaher El Saka. He was voted as one of the best defenders in Turkey twice. He played in 6 African Cup of Nations. He won the 1998 edition, and then, 2006 and 2010. He was not on the 2008 team.
CB: Hany Ramzy هاني جودة رمزي
Hany Ramzy was one of the most successful Egyptian to play football in Europe. He began with Al-Ahly's first team. In 1990, he joined Neuchâtel Xamax. He then spent over 10 seasons in Germany. He became the first Egyptian to play in the Bundesliga when he joined Werder Bremen in 1994. He moved to Kaiserslautern in 1998. Then, he spent a season with 1. FC Saarbrücken. He earned over 120 caps. He went to the World Cup Finals in 1990 as a young player.
LB: Hani Moustafa هاني مصطفى
Hani Moustafa was chosen as the best leftback at the 1970 and 1974 African Nations Cup. At the club level, he captained Al Ahly during his career. He is considered one of the best fullback in Egypt and Al Ahly's history and an icon of the 1970's. He played 11 years for the Egyptian national team.
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| Hany Ramzy |
Hani Moustafa was chosen as the best leftback at the 1970 and 1974 African Nations Cup. At the club level, he captained Al Ahly during his career. He is considered one of the best fullback in Egypt and Al Ahly's history and an icon of the 1970's. He played 11 years for the Egyptian national team.
LB: Mohamed Emara محمد عمارة
Mohamed Emara won the title of best left-back in Egypt for three consecutive years from 1996 to 1998. He played four seasons in the Bundesliga for Hansa Rostock, and best left-back of the month six times in Bundesliga with Hansa Rostock. He was also chosen as one of the 100 best players in the history of Hansa Rostock. With Egypt, he went to four African Cup of Nations. He made the Team of Tournament in 1998 and 2000.
Rifaat El-Fanagily was born in 1936. He is considered one of the best Egyptian players of all-time. He made his national team debut in 1956. He won the 1957 and 1959 Africa Cup of Nations, and represented his country in the 1960 and 1964 Summer Olympics, playing under the United Arab Republic banner on both occassions. At the domestic club level, Rifaat El-Fanagily played for Al Ahly during his career between 1955 and 1967.
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| Rifaat El-Fanagily |
DM/CM: Mohamed Elneny محمد ناصر السيد النني
Elneny began his senior career in the Egyptian Premier League, before moving to Swiss club Basel in January 2013. He won eight honours at Basel, including the Swiss Super League in each of his four seasons. In January 2016, he was transferred to Arsenal. He competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics for the Egyptian under-23 team, and played for the senior team at the 2017, 2019 and 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, as well as the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
RM/RW/CM: Mohamed Barakat محمد بركات
Mohamed Barakat was right midfielder who was known for his box-to-box skills. He was at the peak of his career between 2005 and 2006. He won back-to-back CAF Champions' League with Al Ahly and then, the 2006 African Cup of Nations with Egypt. He would win 5 CAF Champions' League. He played for Ahly Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. He helped the later win 2003 Arab Club Championship. He was chosen as BBC African Player of the Year in 2005. He played 70 times for Egypt between 2000 and 2010.
Mohamed Barakat was right midfielder who was known for his box-to-box skills. He was at the peak of his career between 2005 and 2006. He won back-to-back CAF Champions' League with Al Ahly and then, the 2006 African Cup of Nations with Egypt. He would win 5 CAF Champions' League. He played for Ahly Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. He helped the later win 2003 Arab Club Championship. He was chosen as BBC African Player of the Year in 2005. He played 70 times for Egypt between 2000 and 2010.
SS/LW: Mohamad Zidan محمد عبد الله محمد زيدان
His career started as a striker for his hometown club El Masry in 1998. He played for AB and FC Midtjylland (FCM) in Denmark where he became a star. He was FC Midtjylland Player of the Year: 2003–04, 2004–05. In Bundesliga, he played with Werder Bremen, Mainz 05, Hamburger and Borussia Dortmund. From 2005 to 2012, he played 44 times for Egypt. He won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2008 and 2010.
AM/RW: Ahmad Hassan أحمد حسن
Ahmad Hassan is the all-time cap record holder with the Pharaohs with 184 caps. He played in eight Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for Egypt, winning the tournament four times, in 1998, 2006, 2008 and 2010. He was one of two players on those teams. He was voted the best player of the tournament in 2006. For his club career, he played in Turkey between 2001 and 2006. He also played for Anderlecht. Hazem Emam came from a legendary football family for Zamaluk. Both his father and grandfather were among the greatest ever Zamaluk players. In fact, he was first discovered while his father served as the President of the club. He was a star at the 1996 African Cup of Nations and signed by Udinese after the tournament. He also played for De Graafschap in the Netherlands. He won the 1998 African Cup of Nations for Egypt.
AM: Mohamed Aboutrika محمد أبو تريكة
Mohamed Aboutrika was chosen Africa Best Player of the Year 4 times in 2006, 2008, 2012, and 2013 for the players based in Africa. The award is given by CAF for the players based in Africa. He won the African Cup of Nations in 2006, and 2008 Africa Cup of Nations. At the club level, he spent most of his career with Al Ahly and won 5 CAF Champions' League titles. His club took the bronze at the World Club Cup in 2006. He was BBC African Player of the Year in 2008.
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| Mohamed Aboutrika |
For many years Abouzaid played for the Egypt national football team. In the 1984 African Cup of Nations he was also the top scorer with four goals. In the 1986 African Cup of Nations he was the Egyptian team leading scorer helping his team to win the African Cup of Nations 1986. He also played in the 1990 FIFA World Cup finals. Abouzaid also played for Egypt at the 1984 Summer Olympics. In club football, he played for Al Ahly.
FW: Mahmoud El Khatib محمود إبراهيم إبراهيم الخطيب
Mahmoud El Khatib was voted as the second best player in Africa's history. He was considered to be the greatest footballer ever from Egypt. He spent 16 seasons with Al Ahly. With them, he won 10 league titles, Egyptian Cup 6 times, African Cup Winner's Cup three times, and the African Champions League twice. He also won the 1986 Africa Cup of Nations with Egypt. In 1983, El Khatib won the France Football Award for the best African player. He was the first Egyptian to win the award.
Mahmoud El Khatib was voted as the second best player in Africa's history. He was considered to be the greatest footballer ever from Egypt. He spent 16 seasons with Al Ahly. With them, he won 10 league titles, Egyptian Cup 6 times, African Cup Winner's Cup three times, and the African Champions League twice. He also won the 1986 Africa Cup of Nations with Egypt. In 1983, El Khatib won the France Football Award for the best African player. He was the first Egyptian to win the award.
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| Mahmoud El Khatib |
ST: Hossam Hassan حسام حسن حسين
Hossam Hassan was an icon in Egypt in the 1990's. He is Egypt's all-time top scorer with 68 goals in 176 appearances. He represented
the national team in the 1990 World Cup and seven Africa Cup of Nations
tournaments, winning three of them. He spent most of his career with Al
Ahly, but he won the CAF Champions' League in 2002 with Zamalek SC. He also played briefly in Greece and Switzerland, but without successes. His twin brother is his brother Ibrahim Hassan, a defender.
ST: Hassan El-Shazly حسن الشاذلي,
El-Shazly played club football for the Egyptian team Tersana. He led Tersana to its only Egyptian League title in the 1963 season. He was the Egyptian Premier League top goalscorer four times and its all-time leading scorer. He scored 34 goals as the top league scorer of 1974-75 Egyptian premier league, a one-season record that still stands. He was also the all-time leading scorer for African Cup of Nations.
ST: Mohamed Salah محمد صلاح حامد محروس غالي
"Mo" Salah played with El Mokawloon in Egypt before heading to play for Basel in Switzerland. In 2013, he won the best player award in Switzerland. He earned a big move to Chelsea in 2014, but he ended up with a loan move to Fiorentina and Roma. In 2017, he moved to Liverpool after starring for Roma. He won the Champions' League. In 2017, he helped Egypt for their first World Cup Finals since 1990. In the World Cup Finals, he scored a single goal.
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| Mohamed Salah |
Honorable Mention
Nader El-Sayed, Mustafa Mansour, Thabet El-Batal, Ekramy El-Shahat, Hassan Mokhtar, Hassan Ali, Hassan Orabi, Yehia Eman, Ahmed Elmohamady, Ali Shehata, Ashraf Kasem, Ahmed Hegazi, Emad El Nahhas, Hassan Hamdy, Hany Said, Samir Kamouna, Mimi El-Sherbiny, Maher Hammam, Sayed Moawad, Medhat Abdel-Hady, Rabie Yassin, Mido, Mohamed Latif, Mahmoud Mokhtar, Ad-Diba, Hassan Shehata, Hossam Ghaly, Amr Zaki, Emad Moteab, Mohammed Diab El-Attar, Mohamed Elneny, Farouk Gaafar, Raafat Attia, Mahmoud El-Gohary, Moustafa Abdou, Magdi Abdelghani, Hussein Hegazi, Trézéguet, Saleh Selim, Hassan Shehata, Hosny Abd Rabo, Ali Abo Gresha, Magdi Abdelghani.
Squad Explanation
-- This team was created in 2014. I did a in depth review in August 2022. During the review, I found my original team confusing. I cut two of the three goalkeepers, and made at least 4 changes to the team.
-- Egypt has a rich history in African football. I tried to mix the older players with the newer players. At the time of writing, Egypt won 7 African Cup of Nations(a record).
-- A large number of my players came from the Golden Generation that won three straight African Cup of Nations between 2006 and 2010. Essam El-Hadary, Abdel-Zaher El-Saqqa, Wael Gomaa, Ahmed Fathy, Mohamed Barakat, Ahmad Hassan, Mohamed Aboutrika and Mohamed Zidan were from that era.
-- A large number of my players came from the Golden Generation that won three straight African Cup of Nations between 2006 and 2010. Essam El-Hadary, Abdel-Zaher El-Saqqa, Wael Gomaa, Ahmed Fathy, Mohamed Barakat, Ahmad Hassan, Mohamed Aboutrika and Mohamed Zidan were from that era.
-- Essam El-Hadary, Mahmoud El Khatib, Ahmad Hassan, Hossam Hassan and Mohamed Salah were automatic selections. They are the greatest ever footballers from Egypt. Wael Gomaa and Rifaat El-Fanagily probably deserved to be considered beyond reasonable doubt that they belonged to this team.
-- In the 1924 Olympics, Egypt pulled a big upset by beating Hungary 3-0. Hungary was a medal contender. Hussein Hegazi became the first African player to play in England after playing with Dulwich Hamlet and Fulham in 1911. He held the record of the the oldest ever player to score in an Olympics until Ryan Giggs broken it in 2012. Egypt also came 4th in 1928 and 1964. In 1964, it was completing as United Arab Republic, which was the name of the country at the time. Moustafa Reyadh finished second top scorer, and Rifaat El-Fanagily also scored 3 goals.
-- Egypt had a long history in football, but this team was relatively young. Hassan El-Shazly, Rifaat El-Fanagily and Adel Hekal were the only players who played before the 1980's.
-- IFFHS's Egypt's All-Time Best XI Dream team was as followed: Essam El Hadary, Ibrahim Hassan, Hany Ramzy, Ibrahim Youssef, Hany Moustafa, Rifaat El-Fanagily, Ahmed Hassan, Mohamed Aboutrika, Mohamed Salah, Mahmoud El Khatib and Hossam Hassan. I would have put Wael Gomaa on the team.
-- The Confederation of African Football (CAF) compiled a list of 200 greatest African footballers of the last 50 years in 2006. I used this list as a reference. The Egyptians selected were: Refaat Attia. Ali Abo Gresha, Ad-Diba, Hassan El Shazly, Rifaat El-Fanagily, Mahmoud El Gohary, Saleh Selim, Farouk Gaafar, Mahmoud El Khatib, Hani Moustafa, Hassan Shehata, Magdy Abdelghani, Taher Abouzeid, Ahmed Shobair, Ibrahim Youssef, Ahmed Hassan, Hossam Hassan, Mido, and Hany Ramzy.
Goalkeeper
-- In 2022, I looked into Arab sources through google translate. So I had another perspective of the goalkeeper position. Essam El-Hadary is probably the best North African goalkeeper in history. He was a part of the three straight African Cup of Nations winning team as well as the 2018 World Cup teams. Moreover, he was a part of the 1998 African Nations Cup winning team.
-- In 2014, I took Nader El-Sayed and Mustafa Mansour. I probably chose them because of their careers in Europe. Being one of the first non-British, non-Irish player to play in the Scottish league carried a lot of merits for Mansour, but he was only mentioned in one of my four Arab sources. He was not on rsssf.com's African goalkeepers of the Century. In 2022, I decided to drop him.
-- The second and third goalkeeper would be between Nader El-Sayed, Adel Hekal and Ahmed Shobair. All three goalkeepers were mentioned frequently by the four Arab sources I used, but El-Sayed was only listed in three of the four lists. Shobair's error against England caused Egypt a place in the 2nd round at the 1990 World Cup Finals, but he had a solid World Cup Finals in 1990. Both English and Arab sources ranked him among the top ever from Egypt. He ranked 8th for African goalkeeper of the Century by rsssf.com. So he took one of two spots.
-- The third spot was narrowed down to Nader El-Sayed or Adel Hekal. El-Sayed is the second most capped Egyptian goalkeeper. He was an all-timer in Zamalek SC. However, his poor stints in Europe and Al Ahly affected his reputation. So I decided to take Adel Heikal. He was chosen by France's "African Games" magazine as one of the ten best African goalkeepers from 1958 to 1983. With Al-Ahly, he won the league title 10 times and the African Nations Championship with Egypt in 1959. According to an Arab article, he was also chosen as the best goalkeeper in the 1959 African Cup of Nations that was held in Egypt. He was also chosen as one of the best goalkeepers in the 1963 Mediterranean Championship.
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| Adel Heikal |
-- Nader El-Sayed was capped over 100 times for the Pharaohs. He was chosen as the best keeper at African Cup of Nations in 1998 and 2000. His best years were spent at Zamaluk. He also played in Europe with Club Brugge in the Belgian League and with Akratitos in Greece. Nader participated with Al-Ahly in the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship
-- Mustafa Mansour played for Cairo club Al-Ahly in his native land, where his performances earned him a selection for the 1934 World Cup in Italy. He played in Egypt's only game at the tournament, a 4–2 defeat to Hungary in the first round in Naples. He also represented Egypt at the 1936 Summer Olympics. He went to study in Scotland in 1936, where he became one of the first non-British, non-Irish player to play in the Scottish league.
Defenders
-- Righback Ahmed Fathy were on the team that won three straight African Cup of Nations. He also went to the World Cup Finals in 2018. I took him over Ahmed Elmohamady in 2014. However,
Elmohamady was voted as Hull City's Player of the Year in the 2012-2013 season. That season, Ahmed Fathy played half of the season on loan with the same club. He only had a single start during his time there. But I did not have any doubt that Fathy was the more highly rated player. In 2018 World Cup Finals, Fathy was the captain of Pharaohs and started over Elmohamady. Fathy was also frequently mentioned as all-timer. He was voted into CAF Team of the Decade (2011-2020) by IFFHS. The other rightback went to Ibrahim Hassan who is the twin brother of Hossam Hassan. Elmohamady might be better than him by 2022. His career in Europe might even suppress that of Hany Ramzy, but being Hossam's brother might help Ibrahim's reputation. I had heard of the twins before I studied Egyptian football.
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| Ibrahim Hassan |
-- I also looked into Ali Shehata. He had 26 caps for Egypt. He was chosen as the best rigthback at African Cup of Nations in 1984 and 1986. He also represented Egypt in the 1984 Summer Olympics. At the domestic club level, he played for El Mekawleen, a club based in Nasr City. He won the African Cup Winners Cup and the league champion in 1982.
-- In 2022, I kept Hani Moustafa as my leftback. The backup leftback was more difficult to choose. Mohamed Emara won the title of best left-back in Egypt for three consecutive years from 1996 to 1998, and best left-back of the month six times in Bundesliga with Hansa Rostock. He was also chosen as one of the 100 best players in the history of Hansa Rostock. Rabie Yassin was also frequently mentioned. He was also chosen on the Team of Tournament in the 1986 AFCON where Egypt won the title. He competed in the 1984 Olympic Games and the 1990 World Cup. He also won two editions of the African Champions League for Al Ahly. I also looked into Sayed Moawad and Medhat Abdel-Hady. Ultimately, I took Emara because of his career in Europe. The non-Egyptians recognized him better.
-- Ibrahim Youssef was considered Egypt's greatest defender, but the modern fans considered Wael Gomaa "The Rock" as Egypt's greatest ever defender. Hany Ramzy was one of the most successful Egyptian to play football in Europe. He was also the first Christian captain of the national team. The three of them were undisputed selections for my central defenders.
-- The fourth central defender was more difficult to choose. Basically, I narrowed it down to three choices: Abdel-Zaher El-Saqqa, Ashraf Kasem and Ahmed Hegazi. Abdel-Zaher El-Saqqa played as rightback at the 1998 AFCON, but I believed that he was a central defender. He was a member of the 2006 and 2010 AFCON winning team, but was left off for the 2008 team. The filgoal.com listed him among Egypt's greatest central defenders. He spent 10 seasons in the Turkish league. He was voted the top defenders over there for a few seasons.
-- CB Ashraf Kasem was considered as one of Zamalek's greatest defenders. The Egyptians considered him the "Prince of Egyptian football". He was voted as the best defender in Saudi Arabia when he played for Al Hilal. Ahmed Hegazi spent a single season as a starter in the English Premiership. In the end, I took Abdel-Zaher El-Saqqa largely because of his career in Turkey..
-- I also put Emad El Nahhas, Hassan Hamdy, Hany Said and Samir Kamouna on honorable mentions. The Yallakora.com chose Maher Hammam on their Best XI.
Midfielders/Wingers
-- Rifaat El- Fanagili was chosen the best defender of the 1960 Olympic football tournament in Rome, but I took him as a defensive midfielder. He was an undisputed player on this team. In fact, this team lacked defensive midfielders. At least, one source said that he was Egypt's greatest midfielders.
-- In 2014, I took too many attack midfielders so in 2022 I added Mohamed Elneny to the team who played in a deeper role than the other players. He spent 7 seasons with Arsenal and played well in Switzerland. Hossam Ghaly was considered, but his miserable career in Tottenham Hotspurs undermined his selection here.
-- Farouk Gaafar's lack of successes in AFCON affected his status. However, he was a legend with Zamalek SC. I put him on honorable mentions.
-- Ahmad Hassan won four African Cup of Nations alongside goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary. He was the MVP of the 2006 and 2010 tournament. In total, he played in 8 African Cups of Nations a record. He is also the most capped footballer in the world with over 180 games. Mohamed Aboutrika was chosen Africa Best Player of the Year 4 times in 2006, 2008, 2012, and 2013 for the players based in Africa. The pair easily took two of the attack midfielders' spots. Hazem Emam was also mentioned many times as one of the greatest ever Egyptian footballers.
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| Ahmad Hassan |
-- Mohamed Zidan had a brilliant career in Denmark and Germany. His international fame was helped by his name being similar to Zinedine Zidane. They actually had similar moves. His highlights on Youtube was awesome. His ball control was probably one of the greatest in his generation. He was usually a secondary striker, but he could play on the left, a position I badly needed.
-- At the end of selections, I had a single spot left. I did not need rightback Ahmed Elmohamady who would have been a good choice. In 2014, I somehow ranked Saleh Selim as one of the sure-in players. He was an all-timer with Al-Ahly who later became their president. For Egypt, he was a key player on the 1959 AFCON winning team. In 2022, however, I was not sure. Hassan Shehata was known to be the coach who won three straight African Cup of Nations. He also finished 3rd as African Player of the Year in 1973. So his playing career had merits. Ali Abo Gresha, Taher Abouzeid and Magdi Abdelghani were ranked very high on the IFFHS African Players of the Century while Selim and Shehata were not on the Top 50. Hosny Abd Rabo was chosen as the best player in the African Cup of Nations in 2008. So I found it very difficult to choose one out of this group.
-- In the end, I followed IFFHS's ranking. Taher Abouzeid had the highest rank out of this group. He was on the Team of Tournament for 1984 and 1986 African Cup of Nations. He was Egypt's best players as they won the Cup in 1986. His goal in the semifinal helped Egypt beating Morocco for the first time in 30 years.
-- Saleh Selim was nicknamed El Maestro. He was a legend in Egypt. He spent a season with Grazer AK ins Austria, which was considered a break through for Egyptians playing in Europe. He also won 11 league titles with Al Ahly. After his retirement, he was elected the President of the club due to his popularity. With the national team, he won the African Cup of Nations in 1959.
-- Nicknamed " The Caesar ", Hosny Abd Rabo was chosen as the best player in the African Cup of Nations in 2008. He played mainly for Ismaily in Egypt. He spent 2 seasons with RC Strasbourg in France. He also played in UAE and Saudi Arabia. He played 100 times for the Egyptian national team between 2004 and 2014.
-- Hassan Shehata's career was associated with Zamalek. He was awarded as Best player in Asia 1970. He was also chosen as the best player at the 1974 African Nations' Cup and finished 3rd the African Player of the Year on the same year. As a coach, he captured three straight African Cup of Nations between 2006 and 2010.
-- Ali Abo Greisha is considered one of the best African players in the 1970's. With Ismaily, he won the African champions league title in 1969. He was voted 3rd African footballer of the year by France Football in 1970. He was the Top scorer of Egyptian League 1966/67, and Top scorer of African champions league 1969.
-- Ismail Rafaat spent some time with a French club in the 1930's. I have limited information on him. He was from Egypt's 1934 World Cup team.
Forwards
-- I started this section by picking Mohamed Salah, Mahmoud El Khatib and Hossam Hassan.
-- At the time of writing, Mohamed Salah has the most successful career in Europe for an Egyptian player. Furthermore, he helped Egypt to qualify for the World Cup Finals.
-- Mahmoud El Khatib was voted as the second best player in Africa's history. He was African Player of the Year in 1983. He was considered to be Egypt's greatest player before the emerge of Mohamed Salah.
-- Hossam Hassan is Egypt's all-time top scorer with 68 goals in 176 appearances. He also took Egypt to the 1990 World Cup Finals. His twin brother is Ibrahim Hassan who also easily made this all-time tea,. Together, they led Egypt to qualify for the 1990 World Cup Finals.
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| Hossam Hassan |
-- Then, I took Hassan El-Shazly. He was the Egyptian Premier League's all-time leading scorer. He was also the all-time leading scorer for African Cup of Nations for Egypt.
-- Mahmoud El-Gohary might become an all-timer if his career was not cut short. The Egyptian fans better remembered him as a manager.
--Ad-Diba from the 1950's probably deserved to be on the team. He was the hero of 1957 inaugural African Cup of Nations. He was the top scorer with 5 goals, four of which was scored in the Final.
-- Mido was the most talented player of the Golden Generation, but he never lived up with his performance for both clubs and country. He had a successful career with Ajax, but he bounced around Europe after that. He also fought with various managers of the national team. He ended up with just 51 caps for Egypt. So there were more players who had done better with their careers. Mohamed Latif was a pioneer for playing in Europe. He went to Europe with goalkeeper Mustafa Mansour. I also studied Shikabala. They all made honorable mention.
-- Trézéguet's career in Aston Villa has mixed review. I put him on Honorable mention for now.
Starting lineup
Formation: 4-3-3
Formation: 4-3-3
El-Hadary
ReplyDeleteA.Shehata Gomaa Youssef Emara/Moustafa
A.Hassan
Abouzaid Aboutraika
Salah Abougreisha Zidan
El Khatib was dropped because he didn't make it into the AFCON XI, while half of his side did.
Pick your favorite left back.