CAIRO - What happened last Thursday was something unparalleled in the history of Egyptian football. This was the first time for a Zamalek technical coach to go to the Ahly training stadium in el-Gezira and encourage the team during one of their training sessions. What's more, this was the first time for Ahly technical coach Manuel José da Silva, since the start of his career with the Red Devils, to stop a training session. José started his career with Al-Ahly in 2001-2002. He then returned in 2003 and stayed till 2009, before returning again last year. José, 65, did so to welcome Shehata and his coaching staff, who came to Ahly to express their sympathy and support for the players, in the light of the Port Said tragedy that claimed the lives of at least 72 Ahly fans. José thanked Shehata for the visit, stressing that it will have a positive impact on the local sporting atmosphere, while sending a strong, clear message to fans, who are prepared to use violence. "We all appreciate your kind visit, and I respect you as a kind person before being a talented technical coach," José told Shehata, hoping for more such visits between the two big clubs in the near future. Shehata visit to José revealed the convergence of ideas between the two coaches concerning resuming the Egyptian Premier League in the present security conditions in the country. Their appearance at Mokhtar el-Tetch Stadium, at the headquarters of the Red Devils in el-Gezira, seemed to suggest that they are one hand against resuming the Premier League at the present time, especially after the 'Massacre of Port Said'. According to sources at Al-Ahly, José welcomes the idea of paying a visit to the Zamalek club, after his side return from their African Champions League (ACL) match at the end of March against the winner of the encounter between Comoros' Coin Nord FC and Ethiopian Coffee FC. The same sources added that the team's key player, Mohamed Barakat, has informed the club board of his wish to retire at the end of the season. Barakat had announced a few days previously that he was going to retire right now, after the Port Said tragedy, but, after the coaching staff and his teammates talked to him, he has now delayed his retirement till the end of the season. Back again to Shehata's historic visit to Al-Ahly, the ex-Egypt coach said that his visit as Zamalek coach was a way of telling all football fans in Egypt to behave in a sporting manner. "We are all brothers and we play with pride on the pitch," Shehata said after the visit, stressing that he wanted to support Al-Ahly players and their coaching staff at this sad time after the Massacre of Port Said. On Wednesday February 1, in Port Said, a match between Al-Masry and Al-Ahly turned violent, claiming the lives of at least 72 Ahly fans and injuring around 1,000 more. The Portuguese coach held a session last week with the players to try and distract them from the Port Said tragedy. José himself has donated LE375,000 (around $62,000) to the fund for the martyrs and those injured in Port Said, while the team players have asked the club board to donate a percentage of their annual income. The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) board members have resigned, in solidarity with the families of the fans who died in Port Said. "We are here today to convey our feelings, that are the feelings of all Egyptians, to the Ahly players and their coaching staff headed by Mr José," Shehata stressed after the visit. Sayyed Abdel-Hafiz, the Ahly football director, praised coach Shehata for visiting his side, stressing that this kind gesture came at the right time. "Coach Shehata deserves our sincere thanks and respect," said Abdel-Hafiz, revealing that the Zamalek coach rang him at the time of the tragedy to ask how they were and to give them moral support. Abdel-Hafiz explained that the exchange of visits among the various clubs, especially the big ones, will help consolidate sporting relations and send a clear message condemning violence in local football stadiums. The Red Devils in the UAE Meanwhile, the Ahly players arrived Sunday in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to start a training camp lasting till March 10th. Abdel-Hafiz says that the Gulf training camp will help the players prepare for their ACL match at the end of March. "The camp will also help them get over their grief after the Port Said tragedy,” he adds, stressing that the club, players and coaching staff will never neglect the martyrs' rights. "We are waiting for the results of the investigation into the Port Said events. We cannot think about resuming local sporting activities, until the martyrs get their rights. Of course, the perpetrators must be punished.” A number of key Ahly players, led by playmaker Mohamed Abou Treika, Mohamed Barakat, Ahmed Fathi and Emad Mete'b, have decided to stop playing until the results of the investigation are announced. Al-Ahly will play three friendlies in Dubai, starting with Kuwaiti club of Kuwait on March 2nd, then meeting Al-Ahly of Dubai on March 5th, followed by Emirates club of the UAE on March 9th. The Red Devils returned to training last week after a long absence, in the wake of the deadly scenes they witnessed in Port Said. The Premier League has been postponed, while most soccer clubs have suspended all their sporting activities and declared 40 days of mourning. They include Al-Ahly Club, whose period of mourning will end on March 11. Seconds after the final whistle at the fateful match, all Hell broke loose. Thousands of supporters of Port Said team Al-Masry invaded the pitch, hurling bottles and rocks at the fans of Cairo's Ahly.
Could the League resume?
Although many Egyptian sports experts and heads of federations have been urging the concerned officials to take the necessary measures to prevent something like the massacre of Port Said ever happening again, stressing the dire need for sporting events to resume in the country, others stress the impossibility of resuming the League this season. Emad el-Banani, the Chairman of Egypt's National Sports Council (NSC), says that he is confident that the Egyptian Premier League will resume again in the coming period, stressing that the stoppage was necessary, so everyone could show their support for the families of the Port Said victims. "I have great confidence that the Premier League will soon resume," says el-Banani, pointing out that we cannot think about this until the end of the investigation into the Port Said incident. Some media reports said that the League could resume in empty stadiums after the mourning period ends on March 15. "The date for its resumption has yet to be decided," adds el-Banani. Ahmed Naggi, Ahly goalkeeper's coach, believes that the League shouldn't resume yet, because of what the players and the coaching staff have suffered. “I'm not against the resumption of sporting activities after the end of the mourning period, but resuming the Premier League will only cause more chaos. "It's impossible to resume the Premier League this season, because there won't be time to clear the backlog of matches," he explains. Al-Ahly Club have in principle declared that the first week of every February will be known as ‘Al-Ahly Martyrs' Week'. Anwar Saleh, the acting president of the Egyptian Football Federation (EFA), says that EFA wants to resume the Premier League as soon as possible, after the end of the investigations. "We expect that the decision will be taken to resume when the investigation has finished," adds Saleh, explaining that the matches will be played in empty stadiums. “Most of the clubs want the League to resume, as many of them are in dire financial straits. The resumption of the Premier League will also help people overcome their grief, provided that there is adequate security," he comments. Tareq Yehia, Misr Elmaqasah (MCSD) coach, is adamant that sporting activities, particularly the Premier League, should resume, warning of the negative consequences if the suspension continues. He suggests that the matches should resume in the presence of just a few fans, to make it easier for the security forces to keep control. "Reducing the number of fans may reduce the violence on the pitch," Yehia argues, explaining that the players, coaches and administrators have all been affected by the suspension. "We are all deeply affected by the Port Said tragedy, but life must go on. How are they [players, coaches and other people] meant to live, if sports stopped?” he asks, admitting that the Port Said tragedy was Egypt's worst-ever sporting disaster. "The stoppage will also affect the performance of many clubs, which will in turn affect the national teams, as training camps are not enough." Tareq el-Ashri, Haras el-Hedoud coach, who also paid a visit to Al-Ahly on Saturday, has expressed his support for the Ahly players at this difficult time. El-Ashri suggests that the security forces give up securing matches, leaving this to the clubs' private security companies. "This will prevent violence between police and fans," he explains, noting that discipline will only come back if the fans are less unrestrained.
