Hassan played just 126 minutes at this summer’s World Cup, but it was enough to send his reputation rocketing. He did not feature in any of Egypt’s Group G matches against Belgium, Iran and New Zealand, with head coach Hossam Hassan later revealing it was down to a paperwork delay in registering the former France youth international. Hassan was finally unleashed as a second-half substitute in Egypt’s last-32 penalty shootout win over Australia – before delivering a standout performance against Lionel Messi’s Argentina. A left-footer deployed on the right flank, he started the last-16 match and set up Mostafa Zico’s goal, skipping past Enzo Fernandez before drilling in a precise delivery, as Egypt moved 2-0 up only to ultimately lose 3-2 to the defending champions and eventual beaten finalists.
However, it was the Egyptians’ infamous disallowed goal that showcased Hassan’s direct running and dynamic dribbling qualities. Bursting forward from the right-back area, he evaded two challenges in a 60-yard run before threading a pass through for Mo Salah to tee up Zico. Across his two World Cup performances, Hassan registered nine dribble attempts at a rate of 6.4 per 90 minutes.
If Celtic had hoped to keep their interest in the 24-year-old under the radar, that prospect was blown out of the water with his impact on football’s biggest stage. Kasper Hogh is an out and-out-striker while fellow new arrival Camilo Duran, who can play wide or through the middle, is left-footed but has been deployed on the right wing in Celtic’s opening two games of the season. That right-wing berth will likely become Hassan’s, with Duran shifting over to the left in place of Yang Hyun-jun. Manager O’Neill has also hinted at going with two up front, which would mean a Hogh-Duran front pairing and Hassan providing ammunition on the right and Yang on the left. That would give Celtic a similar attack to Gordon Strachan’s era as manager, when Shunsuke Nakamura and either Aiden McGeady or Shaun Maloney operated as inverted wingers supporting a central pair of strikers, typically Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink with Giorgios Samaras or Scott McDonald. Celtic’s link-up play really stretched Kilmarnock in the 5-1 weekend win, with hat-trick hero Hogh coming deep and going long to combine with his team-mates. Celtic’s wingers and midfielders got into advanced positions throughout, with three different players providing assists for Hogh’s goals.
In short, Hassan would offer Celtic a fresh and exciting option in a fluid attack.
