Top Egypt defender misses AFCON 2025 after unexpected rehab setback | OneFootball

Medical reports confirm the Nice defender is not fit after ACL recovery setback

Top Egypt defender misses AFCON 2025 after unexpected rehab setback

Egypt team director confirmed that Mohamed Abdelmonem was excluded from the Pharaohs final squad for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations due to medical reasons.

This comes after following joint evaluation by the Egypt national team’s medical staff & OGC Nice.

The 26 year old centre back, a key defensive pillar for Egypt in recent years has not fully recovered from the ACL injury he suffered in April.

New complications arose in recent days making him unavailable for the tournament hosted in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January.

Fresh muscle injury delays recovery

According to Egypt team director Ibrahim Hassan, Abdelmonem suffered new calf tear during his rehabilitation programme which significantly delayed his conditioning plan and ruled out any chance of regaining full match readiness before the AFCON group stage.

“The medical reports from both teams clearly showed he would not be ready for the tournament,” Ibrahim Hassan said. “We wish him full and fast recovery. He is one of our most important players and his presence would have been huge boost for the defence.”

He also confirmed that head coach Hossam Hassan has been in regular contact with the player who had hoped to participate but ultimately accepted that the injury made selection impossible.

Egypt’s final AFCON 2025 squad

The Pharaohs announced 27 man squad featuring:

Egypt’s AFCON path

Egypt have been drawn in Group B alongside: