CAIRO - Bob Bradley, the technical coach of Egypt's senior football team, urged the players to concentrate and show single-mindedness during the clash with Guinea away from home at 7:00pm (Cairo Local Time) in their second 2014 World Cup qualifier Sunday. He stressed that the main aim of the Guinea match was grabbing the three points to secure the team a place in the second round of the qualifiers. “I respect the Guinea national team, the way I always do with our opponents. I have full trust in the abilities of my players to achieve victory,” Egypt's official Middle East News Agency (MENA) quoted Bradley as saying. ''We made several mistakes in the Mozambique game and will try to avoid them in the future,'' Bradley said at a news conference before heading off to Guinea. Last week, the Pharaohs defeated Mozambique 2-0 behind closed doors at the Borg el-Arab Stadium in Alexandria in their opening Group G tie, thanks to goals from Mahmoud Fathallah and Mohamed Zidan. Egypt's defender Mahmoud Fathallah scored the opener in the 54th minute, followed by an own goal by Mozambique goalkeeper Joao Rafael Kapango in the 63rd minute thanks to a shot by Egyptian striker Mohamed Zidan. “The Mozambique game showed some of blunders. We are working hard not to repeat them when encountering Guinea,” Bradley pointed out, adding that Guinea is a well-organised team with highly talented players. "We had great opportunities in the first half, but due to the mental strain on the players, they didn't find the back of the net until the second half," he explained, adding that the coaching staff reminded the players at half-time that they had the talent and ability to win. Bradley, who replaced long-time coach Hassan Shehata, added that all players of the Egyptian team were ready for the Guinea clash, although it would be difficult, particularly since Guinea defeated Zimbabwe 1-0 during their opener last week thanks to a free kick by Guinea's Ibrahima Traore. The former United States coach continued: “We failed to grasp several goal-scoring opportunities, and the players didn't move to their advantage.” Egypt has been drawn in Group G of the qualifiers, alongside Guinea, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The Pharaohs entered their second encounter with Guinea in Conakry, capital of Guinea, topping Group G with three points. Guinea came second with three points with a goal difference in favour of Egypt; Zimbabwe and Mozambique came third and fourth with no points. Bradley praised the veterans Mohamed Abou-Treika, Mohamed Naggi ‘Geddo' and the promising youngster Mohamed Salah for following his instructions. “Abou-Treika and Salah move wonderfully without the ball and opened spaces for their teammates. They also opened the game with fast cross passes,” the 56-year old tactician explained. "The players deserve praise and I am proud to train them, despite the difficult situation in Egypt," Bradley said, adding that he urged the players to do their utmost to win. He continued that ‘Geddo' was making enormous efforts by heaping pressure on the defenders of the opposing teams. “Even if he doesn't score, he helps his team mates to do so." Bradley took over as US coach in 2007 when the Americans struggled in the 2006 World Cup in Germany. He guided the US team through the qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, but they lost to Ghana in the second round after drawing with England in the group stage. Bradley gave the players one last lecture before travelling: “Winning the Guinea encounter is very important, it will secure our place in the next round of the qualifiers, and Guinea is one of our main competitors in the group.” For his part, Diaa el-Sayyed, the general coach of the team, explained that victory was the coaching staff's main aim in the Guinea game. "We will play only to win, regardless of how difficult the game is,” el-Sayyed pointed. “We will focus on stopping these professional players and making counter-attacks to achieve an early goal,” el-Sayyed added, explaining that the game would be even more difficult because both teams had the same points after winning their first openers. “Yet the Egyptian team is leading in terms of goal differences, which will reassure the players,” he said. El-Sayyed added that the Pharaohs had to win to qualify for the first place in the group. “The players are well aware that the game represents a major challenge. They will face a strong team with 17 professional European league players,” el-Sayyed pointed out. Sunday's WC 2014 African qualifier: 17:00 GMT Guinea v Egypt
