Shrewsbury Town ace Adam El-Abd hoping for Egypt call-up
Adam El-Abd believes he could win an international recall if he impresses at Shrewsbury Town.
The 31-year-old centre-back was born in Brighton but has won seven full caps for Egypt, qualifying through his Egyptian father, and he holds dual nationality.
El-Abd won his first call-up in May 2012 when he was included in the squad for friendlies against Cameroon, Togo and Senegal, plus a World Cup qualifier against Mozambique, but hasn't been capped since leaving the AMEX in 2014.
Egypt are next in action with two World Cup qualifiers in the autumn, with Congo away on October 2 and Ghana at home on November 6 in a group also containing Uganda.
The former Brighton and Bristol City defender would love to win another chance to represent his country and reckons he can do that with his performances at Greenhous Meadow.
"I would like to think at 31 I've still got a half a chance of getting back in that squad," said El-Abd, who is Town's first Egypt international.
"I haven't given up hope. I want to have a good year here and see where that takes me. If we can get promoted into the Championship with Shrewsbury Town, then why not?
"Hopefully I can put in some good performances to help the team push up to the top half of the league.
"I could get another call-up. You never give up hope.
"It was a great honour and it gave me some unforgettable experiences."
El-Abd was last involved in the Egypt squad when he was at Brighton, before leaving for Ashton Gate two years ago. But he has struggled to play regular first-team football since and he admits he has slipped off the selectors' radar.
"When I went into League One with Bristol City, it never quite happened because they tend to look to the Premier League rather than League One," he said.
"All I can do is control the controllables, which for me is to hopefully play well for Shrewsbury and hopefully someone takes notice and gets me back in the squad."
Meanwhile, midfielder Ian Black is edging closer to fitness after missing Tuesday's 1-0 win against Birmingham with a knee injury picked up last Saturday against Cardiff.
Manager Micky Mellon told shrewsburytown.com: "He did a little bit of running out on the grass so he's making progress, but he hasn't joined in training yet.
"You get a few bumps and bruises this time of year but injury-wise we are in a good place."
