The Best of Africa

Ahmed Hassan (Arabic: أحمد حسن‎) (born 2 May 1975 in Maghagha, Egypt) is an Egyptian football player who plays as an attacking midfielder or on the right wing for Egyptian Premier League club Al-Ahly and the Egyptian national team.

Hassan has played in eight Africa Cup of Nations tournaments for Egypt, winning the tournament four times, in 1998, 2006,2008 and 2010. In the 2006 tournament he was named captain and scored four goals in six matches, the second-highest individual goal tally in that year’s tournament. He was named best player of the tournament after winning his second title and Egypt’s fifth, a feat he repeated in 2010 at the age of 34. In 2008, Hassan captained Egypt to their sixth Africa Cup of Nations victory. As of January 25th 2010, Hassan has become Egypt’s most capped player with 170 caps. Ahmed Hassan is one of a number of players who have earned more than 100 international caps for Egypt, and is currently the third most capped player for any country, behind Mohamed Al-Deayea of Saudi Arabia and Claudio Suárez of Mexico.

Hassan broke Hossam Hassan’s appearance record with his 170th cap for Egypt on 25 January 2010 in the Africa Cup of Nations quarter final against Cameroon. He had an eventful game: he headed an Achille Emana corner into his own net (though Emana was credited with the goal); equalized from long range and claimed the final goal in a 3-1 win in extra time from a free-kick despite replays showing the ball did not cross the line.

On 31 January 2010, Hassan picked up his fourth Africa Cup of Nations winners’s medal as Egypt defeated Ghana 1-0 in the final.