Hamza Abdelkarim named among substitutes as Barcelona prepare to face former club الاهلي

Barcelona forward Hamza Abdelkarim is expected to start on the bench when his side face الاهلي in the Joan Gamper Trophy at Spotify Camp Nou on Wednesday evening.

The match will be Abdelkarim’s first appearance against his former club since leaving الاهلي for Barcelona. The Egypt international developed at الاهلي before beginning his European career, and the fixture is expected to carry particular significance for the striker in front of Barcelona supporters.

Catalan newspaper Sport has published its predicted line-ups for the match, with Abdelkarim not included in Barcelona’s expected starting XI. His name instead appears among the substitutes.

That omission comes despite an impressive pre-season for the Egyptian, who has scored three goals and emerged as Barcelona’s leading scorer during their preparations. However, manager Hansi Flick is still assessing his options for the traditional number nine role, with Barcelona yet to establish a regular starting centre-forward.

Sport reports that Flick is continuing to search for the best solution before Barcelona’s opening La Liga match against Elche. In the club’s most recent friendly, against Basel, Raphinha was used in the central striker position.

Barcelona’s predicted line-up is:

Goalkeeper: Joan Garcia.

Defenders: Eric Garcia, Andreas Christensen, Gerard Martin and Alejandro Balde.

Midfielders: Marc Bernal, Espart and Fermin Lopez.

Forwards: Lamine Yamal, Karim Adeyemi and Raphinha.

The predicted Barcelona substitutes are Wojciech Szczesny, Jules Kounde, Curits, Gavi, Pedri, Dani Olmo, Ibrahima, Gordon, Pesio and Hamza Abdelkarim.

Sport expects الاهلي to select an attack featuring Moroccan pair Achraf Bencharki and Sofian Benjedida alongside Algeria forward Monsef Bekrar. Egypt midfielder Emam Ashour is predicted to begin the game among the substitutes.

الاهلي’s expected line-up is:

Goalkeeper: Mostafa Shobeir.

Defenders: Koka, Hady Reyad, Yasser Ibrahim and Mohamed Hany.

Midfielders: Marwan Attia, Akram Tawfik and Ali Mahmoud.

Forwards: Monsef Bekrar, Sofian Benjedida and Achraf Bencharki.

The predicted الاهلي substitutes are Mohamed El Shenawy, Emam Ashour, Reda, Hamza Abdelkarim, Ahmed, Salah, Zizo and Afsha.

Abdelkarim set to face الاهلي

Abdelkarim’s involvement remains a key talking point before kick-off because of his connection with the Egyptian club. He came through الاهلي’s system and is now set to face them for the first time since completing his move to Barcelona.

According to Sport, the Egyptian forward is hoping to take advantage of the uncertainty surrounding Barcelona’s number nine position. Although he is not expected to start, the absence of an established first-choice centre-forward could give him an opportunity to feature during the match.

The game is scheduled to begin at 21:00 Cairo time at Spotify Camp Nou. It is being played as part of the Joan Gamper Trophy, Barcelona’s traditional pre-season fixture.