March 17th, 2024: This Week in Palestinian Football
Palestine set to face Bangladesh in a doubleheader that will determine their World Cup qualification fate
Unfortunately we must- for the 23rd week in a row- start by recognizing the ongoing suffering in Gaza. This genocide has claimed so many lives but it hits harder when a footballer is amongst the killed. In 2024 alone, two footballers whose names are Football Palestine’s database were murdered in Israeli airstrikes. Mouyin Al-Maghrabi in January and Mohammed Barakat last week.
In total 92 footballers have been killed in Gaza and the West Bank since October 7th.
Mahmoud Eid makes National Team Comeback
One of the main talking points of the 2023 Asian Cup Finals was how there was no place for Mahmoud Eid. His exclusion from and Asian Cup squad was, once again, a major talking point. Five years ago, in the United Arab Emirates the shock was more about who was taken in his place than his very absence.
Back then, Noureddine Ould Ali opted to take several veteran defenders who did not see a minute of play- Tamer Salah, Daniel Kabir Mustafa, and the versatile Jaka Ihbeisheh who could be deployed as a full back or winger.
The like-for-like option that travelled to the Emirates in place of Eid was Khaled Salem who was ineffective in all of his substitute appearances.
The narrative in Qatar was completely different. Firstly, because Eid’s club situation was stable and, more importantly, his form was exceptional.
When the squad was released for the Asian Cup finals Mahmoud Eid was lead the Thai top flight in goal involvements. His form has kept up since the return of the Thai League following the Asian Cup.
Eid scored against Yokahama Marinos FC in the knockout stages of the Asian Champions League. A late penalty in extra time was the difference between Bangkok United and a quarterfinal appearance.
A combined 13 goals and assists in league play mean a first national team appearance for the Swedish born attacker is totally merited. Given the absence of Tamer Seyam he could be in line to start as well.
How Deep is Palestine’s Squad? And is a shakeup needed?
The ongoing suspension of league football in Palestine will make that task dificult but the current squad of 22 field players includes a whopping 18 players plying their trades abroad. The represented leagues include: Qatar Stars League, Egyptian Premier League, Jordanian Pro League, Libyan Premier League, Thai League One, Indoneisa Liga 1, Malaysian Super League, Kuwaiti Premier League, and the Belgian Pro League.
Of the seven players that are unattached or still associated with WBPL clubs only goalkeeper Rami Hamadi is guaranteed to start. That is a far cry from November where nearly half the starting lineup were unattached or not playing due to league suspension.
That said some players might need to be replaced, if not in the current cycle, then immediately after the 2027 Asian Cup. Mohammed Saleh, Tamer Seyam, Musab Al-Battat, Odai Kharoub are all over 30 years old. Mahmoud Wadi, Islam Batran, Mohammed Yamin, and Saleh Chihadeh turn 30 this year as well.
Yes, there are many dual nationals out there. Should Camil Jebara (Elfsborg/Sweden), Jamil Najjar (Borussia Mönchengladbach/Germany), Omar Faraj (AIK/Sweden), Yousef Salech (Sirius/Sweden), Adam Daghim (RB Salzburg/Austria), and John Pulskamp (Sporting Kansas City/MLS) be convinced into nationality switches Palestine could elongate their success.
That said, the question with dual nationals is if and when they declare. The aformentioned players cannot play for Palestine this week and it is highly unlikely we see them in a Palestine shirt in 2024.
As such, it becomes crticial for the team to blood in new players that are already eligible. That starts with more players from the Olympic Team. Jamal Hamed has been playing consistently in Qatar for Al-Muaider. Halid Algoul has eight goals and three assist for NK Jarun in the Croatian second division and his older brother Muhamed has netted twice in just four appearances since joining this winter.
In Lebanon, Hamza Hussein who plays in the Lebanese top flight with Al-Ansar should be included in squads once he is fit. There is also the curious case of Mohammed Hebous who also plays for Al-Ansar and has only ever played for Palestine in Futsal
Then there are Egypt-based players such as Hamed Hamdan who is a starter for Petrojet in Egypt and on the brink of promotion to the first tier. Badr Moussa was in Makram Daboub’s good graces but has fallen out of favour despite the fact that he is five years younger than Islam Batran and has been playing consistently.
For better or worse, Palestine will not tinker with the squad that delivered results at the Asian Cup. Should Palestine progress to Round Three of World Cup qualifying the team will need to restock on talent in order to make a push at a Finals appearance in 2026.
Wessam Abou Ali and Moustafa Zeidan in line for June Callups
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Football Palestine to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.