The new Sports Ministry has inherited a load of problems, almost all related to football, reports Ahmed Morsy Just a week after new sports minister El-Amri Farouk appointed Essam Abdel-Moneim as the Egyptian Football Association's (EFA) temporarily executive committee chief for two months until elections, the EFA board resigned. The resignation came after FIFA warned Egypt that they could be suspended due to alleged government interference in football affairs. Shortly following his appointment as the new sports minister, Farouk sacked the interim EFA board headed by Anwar Saleh, who had reached the age of retirement, and named former Ahli keeper Abdel-Moneim as a caretaker chairman. Farouk said FIFA had sent a letter to the EFA warning them of possible sanctions, including a suspension. Previously an Ahli board member, Farouk said in a statement: "FIFA has received wrong information about the issue. They thought that we sacked an elected board of directors, but this is not the case." "We changed the interim chairman because he reached the age of retirement (70). We will send a letter to FIFA within the next few hours to clarify the situation. The new board we appointed will be in charge until the new elections." FIFA reportedly set a deadline �ê" 6pm Sunday �ê" for Egypt to reverse the decision to sacking Saleh. Saleh, however, has rejected Farouq's offer to reinstate him as EFA chairman, leading the sports minister to likely appoint Amer Hussein, head of the association's competition committee, to the position until new elections are held within 60 days. The EFA is seeking to start the new domestic football league season on 24 August but is yet to get the consent of the Interior Ministry, which fears a repeat of the Port Said tragedy in which 75 people were killed in a league game earlier this year. Farouk said on Friday that his priority was to resume football activities in the country and allow fans back into stadiums. For now all games in Egypt, including friendlies and African championship matches, have been played behind closed doors. "The return of football will be my priority in the coming period," Farouk announced. "I'm considering allowing fans back into the stands given the financial losses clubs have incurred during the past due to the absence of fans," the newly-appointed Sports Minister said. Meanwhile, the EFA and the sports minister have yet to decide whether to execute the decision of the Court of Sports Arbitration (CSA) regarding the return of Masri club to national competition. Masri under their new coach Hossam Hassan announced that they were eagerly awaiting to take part in the football league this season after being banned for two years following the Port Said game which was played in the coastal city of Masri. However, prior to his resignation Abdel-Moneim announced that the EFA will not follow through on the decision of the CSA concerning the return of Masri to the domestic league. Security issues are also another obstacle hindering the coming football season since the Interior Ministry refuses to secure any game unless the EFA and football clubs meet certain safety requirements. "I'm trying to coordinate with all the relevant authorities to find the best possible way to resume football and allow fan attendance. Fans breathe life into football matches," Farouq added. The national football activities have been suspended since February's infamous Port Said Stadium disaster, which left 75 dead and hundreds injured following a pitch invasion by Masri supporters in an Egyptian league game against title holders Ahli. Since then, Cairo duo Ahli and Zamalek and the Egyptian national team have had to play their continental games behind closed doors, with the Interior Ministry refusing to secure any game unless the safety requirements were met by the clubs. "We saw how Ahli, Zamalek and the Egyptian national team were affected because they had to play behind closed doors," Farouk added. Egypt surprisingly failed to qualify for next year's African Nations Cup finals in South Africa following a 4-3 aggregate defeat by minnows Central Africa in the qualifiers, missing out on a tournament they have won a record seven times but which they have now missed out on twice. Moreover, Zamalek have made a very poor start to their African Champions League group stage campaign, losing their first three Group B matches against Ahli, Ghana's Berekum Chelsea and Mazembe the DR Congo. Six-time African champions Ahli were the only survivors, as they garnered the maximum nine points from three games in Africa's premier club competition. They are scheduled to fly to Ghana to face Berekum Chelsea in the Group Stage of the CAF Champions League on Sunday 19 August. Ahli are on top of Group B with three straight victories, and hope to maintain their 100 per cent record in the African Champions League group stage and beat Chelsea in Ghana next week. Five-time African champions Zamalek are scheduled to host Mazembe on the same day in Cairo under their newly appointed Brazilian coach Jorvan Vieira. After being unveiled as Hassan Shehata's successor, the Brazilian tactician insisted he was up to the task of managing the success-starved team that has not won the Egyptian Premier League title since 2004. "Zamalek are a huge team. That's why I preferred their offer and snubbed other clubs," said Vieira, who famously steered Iraq to the 2007 Asian Cup triumph at the expense of the more fancied Saudi Arabia. Vieira was speaking during a press conference in which he was presented as the new coach. "Egyptians are passionate about football, and that is motivation for me. This factor makes my job more entertaining although I know that I have a tough mission ahead of me," he added. Vieira's first game in charge will be against TP Mazembe of the DR Congo next week in the African Champions League Group B. "The club's board of directors asked me to see the game from the stands but I insisted on taking charge of the team against Mazembe," the 59-year-old coach, who managed several Moroccan clubs early in his career, added.
