In the middle of a compelling nationwide presidential election, Egypt play Mozambique in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, Ahmed Morsy reports Seven-time African champions Egypt host Mozambique behind closed doors in the opening of the 2014 World Cup qualifiers which start tomorrow in the Borg Al-Arab Stadium in Alexandria, with army soldiers replacing fans. "We informed FIFA that the match would be played without fans, and security authorities agreed that army soldiers could sit instead as ordinary supporters," Egypt Football Association (EFA) spokesman Azmi Megahed was quoted as telling Ahram Sport. Previously, Egypt's Interior Ministry ordered that the game be played behind closed doors for security reasons following February's Port Said tragedy in which 75 football fans were killed. Amid preparations for tomorrow's match, the Pharaohs are currently training in Alexandria. The Egyptian national team, under the guidance of American coach Bob Bradley, have been paired with Guinea, Zimbabwe and Mozambique in Group G. Egypt should finish on top to advance to another, final group as they seek to end a World Cup drought stretching back to 1990. Following their camp in Sudan which ended a week ago, Egypt held a one-week training camp in Alexandria as final preparation for tomorrow's opening World Cup qualifier. "We will train in Alexandria to continue our preparations for the Mozambique match," assistant coach Diaa El-Sayed said. "We will work on raising the players' fitness. "We decided on the final line-up for the Mozambique match during the Sudan camp," El-Sayed added. "The technical staff won't call up new players before playing Mozambique and Guinea." But Bradley recently called up Ahli midfielder Mohamed Shawki, who has been bypassed since Bradley took the helm of the national team in September last year, for the team's training camp ahead of Mozambique. Shawki, 30, will fill in for Ahli teammate Hossam Ashour who picked up an injury during the national team's camp. Despite the fact that Shawki hit out at Bradley last month for perceived snubs, "we called Shawki to fill in for injured Ahli teammate Ashour and this is strong evidence that the technical staff is fair and is not taking matters personally," explained El-Sayed. Shawki declared a month ago that his exclusion from the Egypt squad was not a surprise since he believes that Bradley's choices "are random... I really do not know on what basis players are selected. Before, being included in the national team was important to me. But now representing Egypt has just become a question of duty." Bradley also recently called up England-based defender Adam El-Abd for the camp in Sudan. El-Sayed was full of praise for the 27-year-old who currently plays for Brighton. "El-Abd is a good, experienced and strong player who will add a lot to our defence," said El-Sayed. Egypt assistant coach El-Sayed announced this week that the national team door is still open for Zamalek striker Amr Zaki after Zazi was dropped from the Pharaohs' squad in recent friendly matches. Earlier this month, the Whites' veteran hitman Zaki vented his anger at Bradley for statements to the effect that Zaki is not the best player to draft in the current stage. "The door is still open for the return of Zaki," El-Sayed told Egypt's state-run news agency MENA Saturday, insisting that the technical staff only targets the players most ready. "The technical staff only cares about the interest of the team. Personal differences don't come into the matter," he added. The Pharaohs are also scheduled to play the Central African Republic in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, also in June. The presidential run-offs, slated for 16-17 June, is sure to overshadow any football games during that time. "Politics replaced our passion and fondness for football nowadays," Eslam Essam, 29, told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Our focus is on the presidential elections. Friday's match will be watched but without the ordinary passion. The same gathering in which we were always debating and arguing about football issues and arch-rivals Ahli and Zamalek has now turned into a political gathering discussing the various presidential candidates." Meanwhile, Zamalek's official website said on Saturday that coach Hassan Shehata is to stay on after being persuaded by club chairman Mamdouh Abbas. The official statement from the Whites' management said that Shehata will stay in his post after Zamalek agreed to meet his demands. Tabling his resignation last week, Shehata, the 62-year old tactician, left the Cairo team on Saturday complaining of "management neglect." Shehata, who won a record three successive African titles for Egypt, was reportedly dissatisfied with the management's treatment of players, especially delays in their being paid. He also had a run-in recently with star player Shikabala whose anger at being substituted was broadcast live. "Shehata showed his respect for the Zamalek president and the board members during Saturday's meeting, and the tactician confirmed he will stay with the team," the statement said. "Shehata told the board that he had lodged his resignation to allow management to take any decision against its players without shame," it added. "The management is confident of Shehata's ability to lead Zamalek in this critical situation." Unlike Shehata, Ahli's Portuguese coach Manuel Jose revealed that he will not return to his job again in Egypt but would look back at his time here "with great fondness." With club president Hassan Hamdi in attendance, Ahli held a farewell party for their former coach on Sunday to thank him for his achievements with the team. "Leaving Ahli was the hardest decision of my life," Jose told reporters during the farewell. "The eight years I spent with Ahli were the best of my life." "I won't return to coach Ahli again but the time I spent with the team was very happy," Jose said. Jose was Ahli's most successful coach, winning 20 major titles for the team, including four African crowns. Bradley said a couple of days ago that he was sad to see Jose and Shehata leave their respective jobs (before news came that Shehata was staying). "Jose and Shehata developed Egyptian football throughout their time," Bradley was quoted as telling the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas. "The two coaches helped develop their players and made them able to play at the international level," he added.
