Cissé names 27-man Libya squad for World Cup qualifiers
Libya's national team coach, Senegalese Aliou Cissé, has announced a 27-man preliminary squad for an internal training camp in Benghazi ahead of next month's 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Angola and Eswatini.
The list features the return of several senior players who had previously stepped away from international duty in protest at policies under the former football federation. Striker Hamdou Elhouni and defender Mohammed Al-Munir are among those recalled.
Cissé also included eight players from Al-Ahly Tripoli, who recently secured the domestic league title, highlighting the club's strong contribution to the national side.
The squad features a number of foreign-based players competing in neighbouring Tunisia, including Club Africain trio Ali Youssef, Fahd Al-Mesmari and Osama Al-Shreimi, along with Noureddine Al-Ghleib, who recently joined ES Sahel. Also named was striker Mohamed Soula of Kuwait's Qadsia SC.
One of the notable omissions is Hamburg defender Daniel Al-Fadhli, part of a group of Libyan professionals in Europe who were not included in this camp.
The squad will convene on August 24 in Benghazi for a closed training camp before travelling to Luanda to face Angola on September 4. Four days later, Libya will host Eswatini in Benghazi in the eighth round of the African qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. The views expressed in Op-Ed pieces are those of the author and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of Libyan Express.
How to submit an Op-Ed: Libyan Express accepts opinion articles on a wide range of topics. Submissions may be sent to oped@libyanexpress.com. Please include 'Op-Ed' in the subject line.
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