Newly-appointded Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan has explained the reason why he did not hand Mohamed Salah a call-up for this March international break.

The Liverpool superstar was a doubt for this FIFA break as he only made a camero appearance with the Reds against Man City on Sunday (1-1) since being injured duringt the 2023 AFCON in Ivory Coast.

And Salah was unsurprisingly not in the Pharaohs’ squad list for this month’s friendly games.

When asked about his absence, Hossam Hassan said : “The decision to exclude Salah came at the request of the player and his club because they believe he shouldn’t be present due to his incomplete recovery from injury,” Hassan said, as per KingFut.

“There was communication between the club and the EFA. We can’t force anyone to join the national team.

“Salah is the captain of Egypt and his presence with us will add strength to the team.

“We wish he could be here with us, but we don’t want to hinder his gradual return to playing with Liverpool. That’s the whole picture.”

In addition,  Egypt will take part in the Winsunited Cup during the March break in the UAE alongside Tunisia, Croatia, and New Zealand.