Deadly Israeli airstrikes pound Gaza as Doha talks raise hopes for ceasefire    Egypt accelerates coastal protection projects amid rising climate threats    Egypt's PM calls Israeli war on Gaza 'most dangerous crisis' at BRICS summit    Egypt's FinMin urges BRICS to support debt sustainability    Egypt's gold prices up on July 6th    Venezuela vows to uphold sovereignty on 214th independence anniversary    ADIB Egypt publishes second sustainability report for 2024    Egypt, Saudi FMs discuss Gaza truce, Iran-Israel tensions    Over 215,000 projects funded under Mashrouak, exceeding EGP 33bn in May: Minister    Egypt, Norway hold informal talks ahead of global plastic treaty negotiations    Greco-Roman tombs with hieroglyphic inscriptions discovered in Aswan    UN conference cites Egypt's 'NWFE' programme as model for development finance    Global tour for Korean 'K-Comics' launches in Cairo with 'Hellbound' exhibition    China's factory output expands in June '25    Philip Morris Misr announces new price list effective 1 July    Egypt teams up with private sector to boost university rankings    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Egypt condemns deadly terrorist attack in Niger    Egypt's FM, China's Wang discuss Iran-Israel escalation    Egypt's EHA, Schneider Electric sign MoU on sustainable infrastructure    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Grand Egyptian Museum opening delayed to Q4    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's EDA joins high-level Africa-Europe medicines regulatory talks    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Cabinet approves establishment of national medical tourism council to boost healthcare sector    Egypt's PM follows up on Julius Nyerere dam project in Tanzania    Egypt's FM inspects Julius Nyerere Dam project in Tanzania    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Roma coach struggles to imagine football without hugs
Published in Ahram Online on 14 - 05 - 2020

If there is one thing that AS Roma coach Paulo Fonseca is really going to miss when Serie A eventually re-starts after the coronavirus pandemic, it is a good hug.
In an emotional letter published on the club website, the Portuguese described the importance of the hug in the dressing-room, reminisced on some of the favourite hugs of his career and named the best hugger in the game.
Like handshakes, hugging will be barred when football resumes as part of coronavirus prevention -- measures that Fonseca said he fully supported even though they would be difficult to adapt to.
"It is difficult for me to imagine playing without the passion of the fans behind us – and especially playing without that hug," he said.
"Yes, that hug – which we use to celebrate the best moment in football – the goal. The moment when the goalscorer disappears in a flood of arms."
Fonseca remembered a match in his first season at Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk where they came from two goals down to win 3-2 in the final minutes. "All the players ran to me and hugged me to celebrate the final goal. I will never forget that," he said.
Other favourites included the one which followed Braga's penalty shootout win over Porto in the 2016 Portuguese Cup final and the goal that took his Pacos de Ferreira side into the Champions League playoffs in 2013.
"What will it be like without the hug at the start or end of games with the opposition manager?" he wondered.
"Here in Italy there are so many people I want to embrace, for so many different reasons. And how will I offer support to my players, in the tough moments, without the hug?"
"The hardest thing for me to imagine is the dressing room without the hug," he added. "That simple gesture transmits something that words could never manage to do."
Nobody, he added, did it better than Roma's Argentine defender Federico Fazio. "He understands and embodies that moment like no other. What a hug. What passion! What energy! Incredible. Football, I am sure, will not be the same without that hug."
(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)


Clic here to read the story from its source.