Ahli's response to criticism following their disappointing sixth-place finish in the Club World Cup did little to ease the tension between them and Egyptian media. The media that sang Ahli's praises on numerous occasions during the past four years has reversed its stance towards the Cairo giants following a dismal show in Japan. But Ahli rubbed salts into the wound by responding in an unfriendly manner. "Our performance against Adelaide was not bad but your analysis was," Ahli skipper Shadi Mohamed aimed a swipe against journalists during a press conference on Thursday. A surprising 1-0 defeat to Australia's Adelaide prevented Ahli from consoling their fans, who were stunned to see their team stumble at the first hurdle. The Cairo giants opened their Club World Cup campaign in a disappointing fashion, throwing away a two-goal lead to suffer a 4-2 defeat to Mexico's Pachuca. The opening loss demolished Ahli's hopes of improving their third-place finish in the 2006 edition. "The hype surrounding Ahli heavily affected our displays," coach Manuel Jose said, laying the blame on the media's extensive coverage of the tournament. "I can handle the media pressure, but obviously my players can't." Several pundits listed the factors they thought contributed to Ahli's failure to make a notable impact in the seven-team tournament. Such factors included a fragile defense, Jose's bizarre substitutions and an ageing squad. The 62-year-old coach does not agree. He feels that media are conspiring against him.
"I know that some of you (journalists) will say that I should change the current crop of players but I want to remind you that those players led Ahli to a host of trophies." "You want me to leave Ahli but I intend to see out the remaining period of my contract," Jose, whose deal expires in the summer of 2010, added. Unjustifiable Egyptian critics believe Jose's accusation of media is an unjustifiable excuse for Ahli's inability to reach the Club World Cup latter stages. They said that Jose was trying to exonerate himself from responsibility while some went as far as questioning the Portuguese coach's abilities. "Any coach who blames media for his side's failure must be having technical problems managing his club," former Ahli great and ART analyst Taher Abou-Zeid said. Al-Ahram's respected critic Hassan Al-Mestekawi is wondering how the media's coverage can result in Ahli defeat. "Did the huge support Ahli got during their World Cup campaign have such an adverse effect on their displays?" Al-Mestekawi sarcastically wrote. "What was Jose expecting us to write following Ahli's bad results, did he expected us to applaud his team?" Al-Mestekawi pointed the finger at Ahli for Jose's continuous outbursts against media. "No Ahli official informed Jose that he was wrong. The club should have ordered him to remain silent."
