Following the Pharaohs: Hamza Abdelkarim looks to continue Egypt's dominance over Galatasaray

FC Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has included Egyptian forward Hamza Abdelkarim in his squad for Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League Matchday 2 clash against Galatasaray.

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Searching for a first official goal

The Egyptian attacker travels to Turkey hoping to make his mark in Europe’s premier club competition. Abdelkarim recently made his second official La Liga appearance for the Catalan giants, playing eight minutes against Getafe last Saturday.

Combined with a brief four minute cameo against Rayo Vallecano earlier in the campaign, the forward has only accumulated 12 minutes of official first team football.

However, he previously demonstrated his goalscoring ability by netting four times to become Barcelona's top scorer during their pre-season preparations.

A strong Egyptian record in Istanbul

If given the opportunity on Tuesday, Abdelkarim will look to continue a strong tradition of Egyptian players finding success against Galatasaray.

Fellow countryman Mohamed Salah who now plays for Trabzonspor, recently scored a hat-trick against Victor Osimhen's teammates in a 4-0 league victory this season. Salah also scored a spectacular goal and provided an assist against the same opposition last season while playing for Liverpool in a 4-0 Champions League round of 16 victory.

Other Egyptian internationals have also enjoyed success against the Turkish giants:

• Mahmoud Hassan "Trezeguet": Scored a free-kick for Kasimpasa in February 2019
  
• Ahmed Hassan "Koka": Found the net twice in 2022, scoring for Konyaspor in March and Alanyaspor in October
  
• Abdelzaher El Saka: Provided two assists in 19 appearances against Galatasaray during his spells with Konyaspor and Gençlerbirliği
  
• Ahmed Hassan: The retired national team legend registered an assist in a 2-1 victory for Beşiktaş in 2004, though he never scored across his 15 matches against them

Barcelona will finalise their preparations in Istanbul ahead of Tuesday's crucial European fixture.

For Abdelkarim, the trip represents a golden opportunity to earn Flick’s trust on a major continental stage. Should he feature, the forward will be determined to translate his impressive pre season form into his first official senior goal for the club.

Khaled Hegazy |

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Journaliste sportif spécialisé dans la couverture du football et la création de contenu numérique, alliant expérience éditoriale et expertise des médias sociaux.

Related teams and leagues

Galatasaray

Trabzonspor

Alanyaspor

Konyaspor

Besiktas

Barcelona

Egypt

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