Salah Begins New Egypt Era Under Coach Maher for AFCON 2027
Mohamed Salah slipped back into Egypt colours on Tuesday, but this time the script around him felt different.
The captain reported for national duty ahead of a crucial double-header against Malawi in qualifying for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, the first camp of a new regime under coach Ali Maher. Same talisman, new touchline voice.
The Egyptian Football Association marked the moment with a series of clips on its official channels: Salah arriving at the national teams centre, calm and smiling, trading handshakes, hugs and a few quiet words with Maher. No fanfare from the forward, just the familiar, understated presence that now anchors this squad.
For Maher, it was a significant first image. The new technical director, long respected in domestic football, made a point of greeting his star man warmly, folding him immediately into the group as he begins to stamp his identity on a side that expects to dominate the continent.
Maher era goes public
The introduction will not stay behind closed doors for long.
The FA has scheduled a press conference for Wednesday at the national teams centre in 6th of October City, where Maher and his backroom staff will be formally presented to the media. It will be the coach’s first real chance to lay out his roadmap: how he plans to refresh an experienced core, how he wants Egypt to play, and how central Salah will be to that vision.
Those answers will come with the clock already ticking. Competitive games arrive fast.
Malawi test bookends a pivotal week
Cairo International Stadium will stage the first leg against Malawi on 13 November, a fixture that should crackle with expectation as fans weigh up the early signs of the Maher project. Four days later, the squad will travel south to Bingu International Stadium in Malawi for the return match, part of the fourth round of qualifying.
These are not friendlies to experiment in quietly. They are points that shape a campaign.
Egypt sit in Group Two with Angola, South Sudan and Malawi. They lead the standings with four points, edging Angola only on goal difference. Malawi trail by a single point in third, while South Sudan remain rooted to the bottom without a point.
The margins are thin enough to keep everyone honest.
From slow start to statement win
Egypt’s qualifying story so far has carried two very different chapters.
They opened with a goalless draw away to Angola, a cagey start that left questions about fluency and cutting edge. Then the response came. Against South Sudan, Egypt clicked, tearing through their opponents in a 5-0 win that restored authority and reminded the group who still expects to set the pace.
That swing in performance now forms the backdrop to Maher’s arrival. He inherits a team that has already shown both its vulnerability and its ceiling in this campaign.
Salah, as ever, stands at the centre of it all. His return to camp, his chemistry with a new coach, and his influence in two tight qualifiers will tell Egypt plenty about how quickly this new era can move from hopeful talk to hard results.
