Not only was former Ahli and Egypt goalkeeper Ahmed Shobeir successful throughout his playing career, but also gained a high reputation as a TV presenter after his retirement. Shobeir, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) vice-president, worked as a commentator for several years before being approached by Dream TV to present a football show which became later very popular among Egyptian people. The 46-year-old spoke to FilGoal.com about his football career with Ahli and Egypt national team, his work in media and revealed hidden facts about several disputes which the EFA resolved. Ahli era: Which number have you worn on your jersey before wearing the famous number 1 shirt? Numbers were not that important at that time, I didn't even have a specific number. The number 1 shirt was given to any goalkeeper who stood between the sticks. I wore number 12 early in my Egypt career but then replaced it with the traditional 1. Who were your closest friends throughout your career? I had three roommates who were very close to me. Rabie Yassin was the first one, followed by Ayman Shawki and Mohamed Youssef; I had with the latter a funny situation. Shawki was four years younger than me but he retired before I did. I then told Youssef that I will have a problem finding a new roommate after he retires, although I'm 12 years older than him! Who is the goalkeeping coach that Shobeir is most grateful to? There were three coaches from whom I learned the most. Essam Abdul-Monem was the one who brought me to Ahli; his goalkeeping teachings were pivotal in my development. The second one was Hazem Karam who made me a professional guardian and the third was Ibrahim Riad, whom I consider the best goalkeeping coach in Egypt's history. What are the most important trophies that you won?
My first Egyptian Cup title with Ahli because it was a great start for me with the Red Devils. The last cup triumph was also special because I took part in all its matches. Who is the current player you've wished to play with? Without doubt, Ahli playmaker Mohamed Abou-Treika is the one I hoped to play with because he is an ideal player on and off the pitch. His attitude is comparable to Ahli great Mahmoud Al-Khatib. What is the truth behind your retirement and your strained relationship with Ahli current keeper Essam Al-Hadari? My retirement had nothing to do with Al-Hadari; he is considered one of Ahli's main heroes currently. The story was that in 1997, I returned from a lengthy lay-off through injury and trained very hard in order to be able to participate in the Egyptian Cup final against Ismaili. I asked my teammates Walid Salah Al-Deen and Hadi Khashaba to advise me whether to announce my retirement right after the match or not. Khashaba told me to retire while Salah Al-Deen didn't agree. At the end I did not take part in the match that we lost but, thankfully, my non-participation proved useful as I didn't break my record of not suffering any defeat in the Egyptian Cup. Shobeir with Egypt national team: How do you feel after Hani Ramzi's repeated back passes with you in the 1990 World Cup prompted FIFA to block any keeper from handling such passes? I'm happy to have contributed to changing rules! I remember that World Soccer magazine labeled me as the 'king of time wasting', I was not happy with that but at that time we didn't have the enough experience to deal with big teams. The then Egypt coach Mahmoud Al-Gohari made persistent efforts to solve this problem through organizing friendlies with European high-profile teams. Will you use your strong relationship to convince Al-Gohari return to have a rol
