Bruce rested Al-Muhammadi for Egypt friendly

Sunderland manager Steve Bruce said he kept Ahmed Al-Muhammadi benched in the first period of Sunday's 3-1 loss to Hoffenheim because of Egypt's meeting with DR Congo.

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الإثنين، 09 أغسطس 2010 - 14:27
Sunderland manager Steve Bruce said he kept Ahmed Al-Muhammadi benched in the first period of Sunday's 3-1 loss to Hoffenheim because of Egypt's meeting with DR Congo.

The Pharaohs will play the friendly on Wednesday and highly-rated wing-back Al-Muhammadi has been called for the game.

"I haven't played Al-Muhammadi or Jordan (Henderson) because I know they're going away on internationals on Tuesday," Bruce said.

"It's not ideal, so I've only played them for 45 minutes to keep something in the locker. Hopefully all the lads who are going away will come back healthy."

Al-Muhammadi was introduced at the break instead of Trinidadian striker Kenwyne Jones to feature in his fifth friendly with Sunderland.

The 22-year-old joined Sunderland from Egyptian Premier League side ENPPI on a season-long loan this summer.

The Black Cats open their Premier League campaign against Birmingham City on August 14th.