Preliminary sanction.. Mostafa Mohamed returns to Nantes

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An uncertain future for the Egyptian star

Egyptian striker Mostafa Mohamed (28) has finally joined training with his French club Nantes in preparation for the new season.

Left out of the 2026 World Cup squad by Pharaohs coach Hossam Hassan, the international had been expected to report for pre-season on 24 June.

The former Zamalek man was late back, though, and Nantes were left baffled as to where he was.

According to "Ouest-France", Mohamed returned to Nantes' training centre earlier this week and took part in an individual session on Wednesday, away from the first team, who are currently in La Baule for a week-long training camp.

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The club's initial call on the player has emerged: "The Egyptian Pharaoh will subsequently train with the reserve team until further notice."

Nantes had also been sending him a daily message since 24 June, warning that he would not receive his salary until he turned up at the team's training ground.

Coach Michel Der Zakarian bristled when asked about it, saying he had never seen a player behave like this before.

The former Montpellier boss said: "The player does not want to come to training. That is his problem, not ours. If he does not want to train, then let him stay at home."

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Mohamed has made no secret of his desire to leave Nantes this summer, especially after his salary was cut following the club's relegation to the French second division.

The report concluded: "For its part, the French club, an eight-time league title winner, is not counting much on Mostafa Mohamed to lead the promotion push back to Ligue 1, but it does not intend to give up for free a player it signed for 6.5 million euros from Galatasaray in 2023. Nevertheless, offers are not plentiful for the Egyptian striker, who has only one year left on his contract."