Youssef Belammari Injury Scare for Al Ahly

Al Ahly’s push to reset their season has taken an early jolt. Moroccan winger Youssef Belammari suffered a knee sprain during the team’s friendly against Spanish side Badalona on Wednesday at the “Bosc de Tosca” municipal stadium in Spain.

The match forms part of the Red Devils’ pre-season camp, a crucial block of work after a barren campaign in which the Cairo giants failed to land a single major trophy, either at home or in Africa. They came to Spain looking for rhythm and reassurance. Instead, they left this game with a fresh concern.

Al Ahly announced through their official channels that Belammari was taken straight to hospital for medical checks and X-rays. The medical staff will use those tests to determine the exact nature of the knee problem and how severe it is, before deciding how long the 25-year-old will be out of training and competitive action.

For now, the club are calling it a sprain. The real question is whether the scans will uncover ligament damage that could force a long spell of treatment and rehabilitation, or whether the winger escapes with a shorter layoff and can rejoin the squad during the camp.

Signed from Raja Casablanca last January on a three-and-a-half-year deal, Belammari arrived as part of a mini-rebuild aimed at refreshing an ageing core and injecting more pace and directness into Al Ahly’s attack. His pre-season was supposed to be about settling fully into the system and staking a stronger claim to a starting place.

Instead, the focus shifts to the scan room and the verdict of the doctors. For a club already under pressure to respond to last season’s failures, the timing of this injury is a sharp reminder: the road back to the top rarely runs smooth.