LUXOR: Egypt assistant coach Shawki Gharib said that Egypt under 20 World Cup preparations should take place inside the country rather than abroad. Gharib stressed that the current under-20 players should be exposed to the Egyptian football scene, which will be crucial in earning them support during the World Cup. The players need massive backing from the fans, Gharib said during the World Cup draw, which was held in Luxor on Sunday. This will only be achieved through gaining popularity by playing home friendlies. The young Pharaohs were drawn in Group A of the competition, alongside Italy, Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago. Under-20 coach Miroslav Soukup earlier said that he is considering staging an Egypt training camp in either Germany or France. However, Gharib, who led the U-20 team to third place in the 2001 World Cup, is convinced that foreign camps won t be the best way to prepare the players. In 2001, we received a lot of support because most of my players were already known to the Egyptian fans. Gharib s 2001 team had a number of current Egypt stars, including Middlesbrough midfielder Mohamed Shawky and Nasr s Hossam Ghaly.
