Extreme weather conditions will be Egypt's only concern when they face Djibouti away from home in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers on Friday. The Pharaohs are expected to enjoy an easy ride against a helpless Djibouti side, who suffered a humiliating 8-1 defeat to Malawi in their first World Cup qualifier. Egypt players will just have to cope with Djibouti's heat. Temperatures there climbed above 40 degrees Celsius this week. An afternoon kick-off will do Egypt no favor as they try to acclimatize to the weather conditions. Nevertheless, the six-time African champions are expected to claim their second successive win in Group 12 after defeating DR Congo 2-1 on Sunday. Egypt assistant coach Shawki Gharib warned his players of any over-confident approach. "We will approach the game seriously as we always do," he told Egyptian daily Al-Ahram. "We don't want to lose our concentration just because everyone talks about a very easy victory over Djibouti.
Zaki may miss the match "Small teams often have the motivation to cause an upset. Djibouti will be doing their best to impress against the African champions." Zaki Doubtful Egypt may have to do without influential striker Amr Zaki, whose knee troubles prevent him from playing on an artificial turf. The technical staff will probably opt against fielding the Zamalek frontman as they fear he might sustain a serious injury. "Anyway, I'm ready to take part in the match," Zaki, who is close to joining Premiership side Wigan, told FilGoal.com. The 25-year-old scored Egypt's first goal against DR Congo with a superb volley. Ismaili striker Mohamed Fadl may deputize for Zaki to partner the out-of-form Emad Meteb upfront. Ahmed Eid is also in the frame after putting in a fine display against DR Congo when he came on as a second-half substitute.
