Egypt’s only two completed transfers since the World Cup landed in Sofia and Riyadh, not London or Glasgow. Hossam Abdelmaguid signed with Bulgarian champions Ludogorets. Mahmoud Trezeguet joined Saudi Arabia’s Al Riyadh. Everything involving a Premier League or Scottish club, meanwhile, is still just talk.
That gap between what has closed and what is merely rumored says more about this transfer window than any single name does. Six Egyptian internationals are tied up in reports right now, from Mohamed Salah down to a 25 year old goalkeeper nobody outside Egypt had heard of a month ago. Only two deals have paperwork behind them, and both went to markets with fewer eyeballs than the ones chasing the rumors.
Two Deals Are Done, and Neither Went to a Premier League Club
Zamalek defender Hossam Abdelmaguid completed his move to Ludogorets, Bulgaria’s 14 time champions, days after finishing his post-World Cup break. His agent, who is also his brother, Islam Abdelmaguid, said the two clubs had agreed a fee of roughly 1.5 million euros for the 25 year old, with add-ons of 250,000 euros tied to Ludogorets reaching European competition and another 300,000 euros if the club qualifies for the Champions League. Zamalek also kept a 20 percent sell-on cut if Ludogorets ever moves him for more than 4 million euros. Abdelmaguid joined Ludogorets from Zamalek this week, with the Bulgarian club confirming the signing after his medical.
He arrives with real pedigree. Abdelmaguid won the Egyptian league three times with Zamalek and scored the penalty that beat Australia in Egypt’s round of 32 shootout, the kick that sent the Pharaohs through to the knockout stage for the first time in the country’s World Cup history.
Mahmoud Trezeguet’s exit moved even faster. Al Ahly sold the winger to Al Riyadh for roughly 1.5 million dollars, according to Egyptian outlet YSScores, less than a year after he signed a five-year contract with the Cairo club from Trabzonspor. Al Riyadh president Bandar Al-Muqail said the club deliberately held off on formal talks while Egypt was still competing at the World Cup, out of respect for the player’s focus, before resuming negotiations once Egypt had been eliminated. Trezeguet scored 18 goals and added an assist in 32 appearances last season. Al Ahly did not stand in his way, with reports citing salary reduction issues on the club’s side as part of why the exit went through so quickly.
| Player | Position | Leaving | Linked With | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hossam Abdelmaguid | Defender | Zamalek | Ludogorets, Bulgaria | Confirmed, around 1.5 million euros |
| Mahmoud Trezeguet | Winger | Al Ahly | Al Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Confirmed, around 1.5 million dollars |
| Emam Ashour | Midfielder | Al Ahly | Al-Ittihad (rejected), Celtic (monitoring) | Bid rejected, no deal |
| Haissem Hassan | Winger | Real Oviedo | Celtic, Liverpool, Marseille | Bids exchanged, unresolved |
| Mostafa Shobeir | Goalkeeper | Al Ahly | Aston Villa | Reported interest only |
| Mohamed Salah | Forward | Liverpool | Beşiktaş (denied), Al-Ahli of Jeddah | No move, contract stands |
Every confirmed name on that list plays for one of Egypt’s two biggest clubs. Every unresolved name plays somewhere else already, or is still waiting for a bid Al Ahly will actually accept.
A Penalty Shootout in Dallas Explains the Sudden Interest
None of this happens without what Egypt did in North America. The Pharaohs drew Belgium and Iran in the group stage, beat New Zealand comfortably, and scraped through as Group G runners-up. Then they beat Australia on penalties in a round of 32 tie that FIFA itself later described as part of the foundation of a historic run.
- June 15: Egypt open the group stage with a 1-1 draw against Belgium.
- June 21: Egypt beat New Zealand 3-1 to take control of the group.
- June 26: A 1-1 draw with Iran sends Egypt through as Group G runners-up.
- July 3: Egypt beats Australia 4-2 on penalties in Dallas, Emam Ashour’s early goal canceled out by a Mohamed Hany own goal, for the country’s first-ever World Cup knockout win.
Egypt had booked their round of 32 spot before their final group match, one of six teams to do so under the expanded 48 team format. Argentina ended the run in the next round, winning 3-2, with winger Haissem Hassan starting against the eventual finalists. The exit stung. The exposure did not fade. Scouts do not need a trophy to notice a goalkeeper who kept a clean sheet against a genuine contender, or a 24 year old winger who troubled Lionel Messi’s back line for 90 minutes.
Al Ahly Turned Down $10 Million for Emam Ashour
The clearest evidence of the money gap driving this window sits with Emam Ashour. Saudi side Al-Ittihad tabled a package worth $10 million for the Al Ahly midfielder, according to Saudi newspaper Al Riyadiyah: a $6 million transfer fee plus an annual salary of $4 million. Al Ahly said no.
- $315,000 is roughly what Ashour currently earns per year at Al Ahly, meaning Al-Ittihad’s offer would have raised his salary more than twelvefold.
- $3 million is what Al Ahly paid Danish club Midtjylland for Ashour back in 2023.
- $8 million is the figure Al Ahly would reportedly consider now, roughly what it would take to change their answer.
Al-Ittihad has also shown interest in Marwan Attia, another Al Ahly midfielder who shares an agent with Ashour, with an offer of $3.5 million reportedly on the table that would triple his salary. Ashour is contracted to Al Ahly until 2028, and Celtic have separately entered the picture. Manager Martin O’Neill personally inquired about the midfielder as Celtic prepare for Champions League football following their Scottish Premiership title, per reporting that cited the fan outlet celtsarehere. Whether Ashour still signs a new deal in Cairo looks increasingly unlikely, with reports suggesting he wants a chance in Europe more than he wants a bigger paycheck at home.
Why Is Everyone Chasing Haissem Hassan?
Hassan went from a relegated Spanish club’s fringe piece to the most contested Egyptian name of the summer in about three weeks. Real Oviedo’s winger, born in France to Egyptian parents, started Egypt’s World Cup games against Argentina and Australia, and his stock has not stopped climbing since.
Real Oviedo’s relegation from La Liga dropped his release clause, reported at either 10 million pounds or 12 million euros depending on the outlet, and that discount is why three clubs are now circling at once.
- Celtic had an opening bid worth roughly 4 million euros rejected, and have been reported preparing a follow-up offer somewhere between 6 million and 7 million pounds.
- Liverpool have been linked with Hassan following his breakout World Cup performances, though no bid has been reported.
- Olympique Marseille are reportedly keeping close tabs on him as well, adding a third suitor to a deal that has not slowed down.
Reports on exactly how many bids Celtic have made do not agree. Some accounts describe two formal offers already submitted. Others describe a club still at the enquiry stage, testing what a deal would cost before committing further. Real Oviedo’s sporting director, David Fernandez, has said publicly that no exit happens without his approval, even as Scottish reporting describes growing confidence in Glasgow.
The team had made 120 million people in Egypt happy.
Hassan said that after Egypt’s win over Australia, describing what the run meant back home. It is the kind of line that explains why three clubs from three different countries are now negotiating over him at once.
Salah and Shobeir Are Stuck in Waiting Games
Mohamed Salah’s summer has produced plenty of noise and no paperwork. The Liverpool captain was linked with a move to Turkish side Beşiktaş, a rumor his agent shut down directly on X. Saudi interest has resurfaced too, this time from Al-Ahli of Jeddah rather than the Al-Ittihad side that chased him in past windows. Al-Ahli is reportedly searching for a marquee replacement after Riyad Mahrez’s contract was terminated following his retirement from international football, which came after Algeria’s own World Cup exit. It has not produced an actual bid Liverpool has had to consider.
Goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir has quietly become one of the tournament’s more sought-after Egyptians. Aston Villa are reportedly exploring a move for the 25 year old Al Ahly shot-stopper, and Egyptian outlets have separately reported broader European monitoring of his situation since the World Cup ended. Nothing is signed. A move to England would still be the biggest step of his career if it happens.
The Squad Math Facing Al Ahly and Zamalek
Al Ahly and Zamalek supplied most of Egypt’s World Cup squad, and both are now the ones patching holes rather than cashing in on Europe’s attention. Al Ahly has already signed defenders Ali Mahmoud and Aqtai Abdullah from ENPPI to rebuild depth, and the club is running preseason friendlies against Girona and Espanyol in Spain while it sorts out Ashour’s future and absorbs Trezeguet’s exit.
The financial backdrop is not new. Saudi clubs poured roughly 701 million pounds into foreign talent in a single window a few years ago, after the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund took controlling stakes in four Saudi Pro League clubs, according to figures reported at the time. That spending built the league’s reputation for outbidding almost anyone on wages. It is the same gravity now pulling at Ashour, at Trezeguet, and at whoever replaces Mahrez in Jeddah, except this time the targets are coming straight out of Cairo’s own dressing rooms instead of Europe’s.
Trezeguet signed a five-year contract with Al Ahly last summer. He needed less than one season to leave it behind.
