Egypt, Africa's soccer champions, are making their final preparations for tomorrow's important friendly against England in Wembley Stadium (that kicks off at 10pm, Cairo time), as England get ready for the World Cup finals in South Africa next June. The Egyptian national team held their first training session yesterday in Wembley, having arrived on Sunday. The friendly is crucial for both teams, while Egypt's coaching staff believe that the Wembley game will be a historic one. "We must give a performance worth of the heroes of Africa," said Egypt's assistant coach Shawqi Gharib. "After all, we'll be playing against the country that invented the game." Egypt have previously played against big strong countries such as Brazil, Italy and Argentina. The friendly in London will help Egypt get ready for the African Cup of Nations (ACN) qualifiers in September. The Pharaohs are seeking a record fourth ACN title in a row, having won the continent's prestigious title for the third time in a row last January and the seventh time in total. For England, the game is also very important as they will encounter Algeria in Group C of the World Cup, which also includes the US and Slovenia. Egypt were eliminated from the World Cup qualifiers after losing to Algeria 1-0 in Sudan last November. According to Gharib, the team are very confident, on a high after retaining their ACN title for the third consecutive time in Angola in late January and moving a huge 14 places up to the tenth in FIFA's World Rankings, their highest-ever ranking and only one place behind England in ninth. The Pharaohs' head coach has made only two changes to the team that won in Angola. "Al-Ahly's star Mohamed Abou Treika and Hull City's striker Amr Zaki are only our additions to the African Cup-winning squad for this game. They have been recalled after shaking off injuries that sidelined them from playing in Angola," an enthusiastic Gharib told the semi-official newspaper Al-Ahram. Once again, there was no place for West Ham's forward Mido or Ahly's veteran Mohamed Barakat, despite the fact the latter has recovered from a hamstring injury. "We have carefully studied the English team and are well prepared. Our players are very fit and capable of putting on a good show against one of the biggest teams in the world," he stressed. Egypt's coaching staff tried last week to calm their players, explaining that they want them to go out there and enjoy playing against a great team like England. "Enjoy the game and play it as a group not individually," Gharib and his fellow members of the coaching staff advised the players. He added that, for the Pharaohs, there's no difference between a friendly match and an official game. "This game is like an official one for us, as it will raise the value of the Egyptian players abroad. This will benefit them if they get any offers to play for European teams." England have only played the Egyptians twice before, with their last meeting coming 20 years ago at the 1990 World Cup in Italy. The match will be England's first match of the year, and the first time for Egypt to play at Wembley. Back in 1990, Sir Bobby Robson's side won 1-0, thanks to Mark Wright's goal, a result which secured their qualification for the knock-out phase of the tournament. The other encounter between the teams came in 1986, when England won 4-0 in Cairo. Alaa Mubarak, the Egyptian President's son, attended the national team's training session Saturday night, three days before the crunch game against the Lions, as a sign of support. Coach Hassan Shehata, meanwhile, has rebuffed claims that Abou Treika was included in the squad to face England purely based on his reputation. The 31-year-old soccer wizard was given a short run out in the 2-2 draw with Al-Geish and many feel he is not fit enough to feature for the Pharaohs. However, in a radio interview, Shehata explained: "Abou Treika is now fit and that's why he's earned a place in the squad. There are no compliments for anyone. He's been an Egypt key player for so long." Also, the Pharaohs' boss also defended his selection of striker Zaki, who has also just returned from injury. "We also had to name Amr Zaki as a result of our limited front-line options. We can't face England with a depleted squad," Shehata stressed. England technical coach Fabio Capello, meanwhile, feels that Egypt will give England some much-needed experience of facing North African opposition. Shehata, also, has claimed that if he had been England manager, he would have kicked both John Terry and Ashley Cole out of the national team following allegations over the pair's private lives. Both Chelsea men have seen their names splashed over the front page headlines in recent weeks and whilst Fabio Capello has stripped Terry of the England captaincy, he remains a key part of the squad as does the, currently injured, Cole. However, speaking to the Sunday Mirror, Shehata conceded that he would not have accepted such behaviour from his players. “We have different traditions and rarely face these kinds of problems,” said Shehata. “But if it did happen within the team, it would be a serious and big problem and unacceptable, not only from me, but from the society as well. “Both players [Terry and Ashley Cole] would be excluded and kicked out of the team – no matter who they are and how much the team need them. “This could never happen in the Egyptian team. We endorse strong bonds and respectful relationships. The English team are a great team, one of the top five in the world,” he added. “They have some of the most skilful players in the world. And for me, Mr Capello is one of the best coaches in the world. “England can win the World Cup – and I think it's time that they did.”England's striker Wayne Rooney is hoping his team can benefit from meeting African champions Egypt. "The Egypt game is a big one for us," the Manchester United hit man said. "They're coming off the back of the African Nations Cup, which they won. And we need to show we're preparing well for the World Cup." The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) fully supports the team. "The Egyptian Embassy in London started last Friday distributing around 3,000 flags to the Egyptian and Arab community in London," the Global Arab Network website reported on Sunday. England's Rio Ferdinand will miss the game because of a back injury. Meanwhile, England are also likely to face Mexico in another friendly in May, before taking on Japan at a pre-tournament training camp in Austria. The most recent results of the two teams: The Pharaohs: Egypt-Ghana 1-0, Egypt-Algeria 4-0, Egypt- Cameroon 3-1, Egypt-Benin 2-0, Egypt-Mozambique 2-0, Egypt-Nigeria 3-1. The Lions: Brazil-England 1-0, England-Belarus 3-0, Ukraine-England 1-0, England-Croatia 5-1, England-Slovenia 2-1, Holland-England 2-2. Egypt's squad: Goalkeepers: Essam el-Hadari (Ismaili), Abdel-Wahed el-Sayyed (Zamalek), Mahmoud Abul Saoud (Mansoura). Defenders: Wael Gomaa, Sayyed Moawad, Ahmed Fathi (Al-Ahly), Mahmoud Fathallah, Hani Saeed, Mohamed Abdel-Shafei (Zamalek), Moatassem Salem (Ismaili), Ahmed el-Muhamadi (Enppi), Abdel-Zaher el-Saqqa (Eskisehirspor, Turkey). Midfielders: Mohamed Abou Treika, Ahmed Hassan (Al-Ahly), Shikabala (Zamalek), Abdel-Aziz Tawfiq (Enppi), Ahmed Eid (Harras Al-Hodoud), Hosni Abd Rabou (Ahly, UAE), Hossam Ghali (Nassr, Saudi Arabia). Strikers:- Emad Met'eb (Al-Ahly), Ahmed Raouf (Enppi), el-Sayyed Hamdi (Petrojet), Geddo (Al-Ittihad), Mohamed Zidan (Dortmund, Germany), Amr Zaki (Hull City, England). England's squad: Goalkeepers: James (Portsmouth), Green (West Ham), Hart (Birmingham). Defenders: Brown (Man Utd), Terry (Chelsea), Upson (West Ham), Lescott (Man City), Shawcross (Stoke), Baines (Everton), Warnock (Aston Villa). Midfielders: Milner (Aston Villa), Beckham (AC Milan), Walcott (Arsenal), Lampard (Chelsea), Barry (Man City), Gerrard (Liverpool), Carrick (Man Utd), Wright-Phillips (Man City), Downing (Aston Villa). Forwards: Heskey (Aston Villa), Defoe (Tottenham), Rooney (Man Utd), Crouch (Tottenham), C Cole (West Ham).
