The national soccer team meets Libya on Sunday in a World Cup qualifier in which only victory will do. Nashwa Abdel-Tawab speaks to the man who wants his players mentally tough Come Sunday, Hassan Shehata will face the toughest test of his football life. The coach of Egypt's national football team plays Libya in Cairo on that day in a 2006 World Cup qualifier that Egypt cannot afford to lose. Egypt is currently lagging in fourth place in Group Three of the qualifiers with just seven points, five adrift of leaders Ivory Coast. Libya, Benin, Cameroon and Sudan are the other teams in the group. Egypt is, to put in mildly, in a big hole, through no fault of Shehata. But that does not make him feel any better. "The mission is difficult and the responsibility is heavy," Shehata told Al-Ahram Weekly. "But we can do it if we believe in our team and ourselves. Trust the team and things will be better. There is no way but victory or else we're out. There's no other scenario." Earlier this year, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) confirmed that Shehata will take over the job permanently until 2006 when Egypt hosts the African Nations Cup. Shehata was named caretaker after Italian Marco Tardelli was sacked in October following a string of poor results for the Pharaohs. The decision to stick with Shehata was made after the EFA failed to sign a foreign coach. The association approached former Portugal and Morocco coach Humberto Coelho, Mali-born Jean Tigana and the Pole Henri Kasperzack but settled on Shehata in the end. And for good reason. The 55-year-old guided Egypt's under- 20s to the 2003 African Youth Championship, then to the quarter-finals of the World Youth Championship later that year. As a local league manager he helped promote Minya, Sharqiya and Suez to the Premiership league in three successive seasons. Perhaps his greatest coaching triumph was capturing the Egyptian Cup and Super Cup as his Arab Contractors -- a second division team -- felled powerhouses Ahli and Zamalek in stunning fashion. But now the idol in the game as a player, now its acknowledged master, takes on a much tougher job and one that many flee from. To prepare for Libya, Shehata provided his team with five friendly games with teams from Europe, Asia, and Africa. Two matches were away and three at home. They drew with Bulgaria 1-1, easily handled Uganda 3-0, beat fourth place World Cup finishers South Korea 1-0 in Seoul, hammered Belgium 4-0, and edged Saudi Arabia 1-0 in Dammam. A very impressive 4-0-1 record but to be sure all friendlies. The match with Libya will be Shehata's first official test. "We played almost all schools of the game," Shehata said. "We played Europeans, Africans, Asians and Arabs to gain fitness, mental toughness, a variety of international contacts and above all confidence. "We care about the variety of teams but we can't say that there are strict differences between football schools any longer -- maybe because of globalisation -- but the experience was great. The players gained confidence and are looking for the fans' trust." Like ex-coach Mohsen Saleh, Shehata likes to depend on youth more than experienced players. "Experience has its important moments in the matches, but budding stars are more enthusiastic. "We also have clear criteria when choosing players. They have to be key players for their clubs, not bench warmers. And they have to be good players in our opinion." Shehata sounds more like a psychologist than a coach, which is perhaps all the better considering the big egos he must constantly massage. But Shehata can be no-nonsense. The training site is akin to an army camp. All are dead serious. Things are organised and you have to follow the rules if you want to conduct an interview. He doesn't think he should advise his players to do their best or play with spirit. "The situation of the team in the group is terrible. The players know that. What I help them in, besides technical advice and team play, is the psychological side. They have gained confidence and their target is not only victory but for the fans to change their perception of the team. We want to change the picture of the Egyptian player from one of losers to African champs. But this will only happen through results. "The players, as well as all Egyptians, are compassionate and patriotic. I think the players are co-operating well with me and the assistant coaches." However he insists that working with youth is totally different from working with adults. "The youth team used to obey your orders and worked in harmony to please you and the fans, but the national team is made up of stars. And that makes a big difference. But I've managed." Shehata believes that a native coach is far better than any foreigner. "The foreign coach doesn't understand the Egyptian player and his needs. Historically, the best results with the national team have come under the guidance of the national coaches except once when Michael Smith of Wales helped Egypt to the 1986 African Nations Cup. Shehata hastens to add that Smith had "three good local coaches to help him -- Shehata, Taha Bisri and Ahmed Refaat. "If a foreign coach can change the Egyptian player for the better, it would be great. But so far none have done so." Since retiring in 1983 following a brilliant midfield career with Zamalek and Egypt, Shehata took training courses in Egypt, Romania, Brazil and England. As a player, he was two times the Egyptian League MVP and was selected the third best African footballer in 1974 by France Football. Shehata is also the only Egyptian to be selected the best footballer in Asia, when he played for a club in Kuwait, in 1970. He received the Egyptian Merit of Sport in 1980. Shehata has named four European-based players for their Libya encounter. They were left out of last week's friendly against Saudi Arabia. Ahmed "Mido" Hossam, who currently plays for England's Tottenham Hotspur, has been recalled after being axed from the national team in September. Mido had claimed that he was injured but then played for former club AS Roma within 24 hours of the World Cup qualifier that he missed. He later apologised to the EFA and was thus reinstated. The Turkey-based trio of Abdel-Zaher El-Sakka, Beshir El- Tabei and Ahmed Hassan are the other European-based players back in the Pharaohs' squad. Midfielder Mohamed Barakat and Hosni Abd-Rabbou, who missed last week's friendly against Saudi Arabia because of injury, are also included in the squad. Together IN THEIR second leg, first round matches in Africa's top two football club championships, the four participating Egyptian teams all advanced. All second leg games were hosted in Egypt. Ismaili started the winning streak by beating Ferroviario de Maputo of Mozambique 2-0 in the CAF Confederation Cup. Ismaili had won the first game 1-0 for a 3-0 aggregate win. The second division side the Arab Contractors continued their extraordinary feats, outclassing Ethiopia's Ethiopian Banks 3-1 in the same tournament. The teams had played to a goalless draw in the first leg. The floodgates flew wide open for Ahli as they manhandled Uganda's SC Villa 6-0 in the African Champions League. The first leg had ended scoreless. In the same event, Zamalek easily beat Kenya's Tusker 3-1 for a 4- 1 aggregate victory. The four clubs now advance to the last-16.
