After Egypt won their seventh African Cup of Nations (ACN) title last month in Angola, the players returned home with injuries and feeling fatigued. Prior to the tournament, the Pharaohs' coaching staff had started fielding younger players. The coaches began recruiting fresh blood in earnest after the U-20 World Cup held here last September. The Pharaohs did not put on well in the championship, but some of their youngsters played brilliant football, including three youthful Ahly stars – Moustafa Mahmoud (Afroto), Ahmed Shoukri and Mohamed Talaat. Mahmoud is nicknamed ‘Afroto' (an Arabic world means ‘Little Genie'), because of his speed and unpredictable moves on the pitch. Afroto made his first debut for the Red Devils in the local Premier League on February 12, coming on as a substitute for Osama Hosni in the 63rd minute, when his team were 1-0 down against Police Union. He scored the equaliser for his club from a marvellous long-distance free kick, before inspiring his teammates to achieve a 4-2 win by winning a penalty converted by Mohamed Samir, before his second goal in the 90th minute in a thrilling comeback. The delighted Ahly fans chanted his name until the end of the match. Afroto was a part of the Egypt U-20 national team squad. He scored the opening goal of the tournament last September, for Egypt against Trinidad and Tobago, in a 4-1 win for the Pharaohs. He later scored his second goal in the tournament against Paraguay, although Egypt lost 2-1. Afroto also helped his teammates beat Italy 4-2. After the ACN, Al-Ahly's coach Hossam el-Badri was in a big dilemma because some of his key players came home injured. He had to introduce Afroto and Shokri to help compensate. The two young players did surprisingly well and el-Badri sang their praises after Al-Ahly beat Police Union earlier this month. "Al-Ahly have many Afrotoes. We won't run out of newcomers and players with potential," he said. When Zamalek, another top Egyptian team, missed some veteran players like Amr Zaki and Ahmed Hossam 'Mido', their new coach, Hossam Hassan, replaced them with some of Zamalek's youngsters. He introduced Hossam Arafat, who played superbly for the Pharaohs in the U-20 World Cup. He scored against Enppi; again it was great performance from the young star. Hassan has also introduced Mohamed Ibrahim and Ibrahim Salah, who put on well against Enppi too. The Canal-based Ismaili club have done the same thing with Ahmed Hegazi and Ahmed Seleih. Some Egyptian sports experts say that Egyptian clubs have been turning to their youngsters, as many of their 'big stars' haven't been faring well of late, partly because they are getting on in years. Ex-footballer Gamal Abdel-Hamid says soccer is like anything else. “There's always the need for changes and newcomers,” he said. "This applies to the coaches too, like Hassan of Zamalek and el-Badri of Al-Ahly," he stressed. Most experts agree that young players are good for their clubs and also the national team's squad.
