Alongside midfielder Mahmoud Samir and full-back Osama Hassan, Hamza will not feature in his team’s first game after the Egyptian Premier League’s restart.

Hamza has been out of Zamalek’s recent trainings due to injury as well as illness, while media reports suggested that the player is at loggerheads with the club’s board.

In the meantime, newly signed strikers Olie Koffi Kan and Mohamed Al-Morsi will have the chance to play their first game for the club after being named by Decastel.

The White Knights enforced their attack in January by bringing in Koffi and Al-Morsi from Societe Omnisports Armee in Ivory Coast and Mansoura respectively.

Full-back Ibrahim Salah is also another January acquisition who was named for the Mahalla game.

Mohamed Abdullah will have the chance to feature on Thursday, as the former Ahli man has been training regularly since Decastel took over Zamalek.

Zamalek’s squad to face Mahalla:

Goalkeepers: Mohamed Abdul-Monsef, Abdul-Wahed Al-Sayed.

Defenders: Hani Saied, Mahmoud Fathalla, Ahmed Magdi, Amr Al-Safti, Mohamed Abdullah, Ahmed Ghanem, Alaa Ali, Ibrahim Salah.

Midfielders: Mohamed Aboul-Ella, Ahmed Abdul-Raouf, Alaa Kamal, Shikabala, Ahmed Al-Merghani.

Strikers: Abdul-Halim Ali, Junior Agogo, Mohamed Al-Morsi, Olie Koffi.