The captain and goalkeeper of Egypt national football team Essam al-Hadary is set to become the oldest footballer to play in a World Cup match.

The 45-year-old player was named by Egypt coach Hector Cuper in a 29-man preliminary 2018 World Cup squad which was announced on Monday.

Al-Hadary is expected to reach the milestone by breaking the record set by Colombia goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon, who was 43 when he played at the last World Cup in Brazil.

Egypt, who are placed in Group A will face the host nation Russia as well as Saudi Arabia and Uruguay at the 2018 World Cup holding in Russia next month.

Meanwhile, Essam al-Hadary who started playing for the Egyptian national team in 1996, has made 156 appearances for his country so far.