Zamalek club members no longer trust the ranting speeches of Mortada Mansour, preferring to choose the calmer and wealthier Mamdouh Abbas for the club's presidential seat. Businessman Abbas comfortably beat off competition from controversial lawyer Mansour to become the new Zamalek chairman for a second stint, having occupied the prestigious seat between 2006 and 2008. "It's the beginning of a new era," Abbas commented on his win. "The results show that Zamalek are edging towards stability. We will have four years to fulfill the fans' aims and expectations." Mansour at times attracted Zamalek's general assembly and fans through his enthusiastic and vociferous words. His vows to defend the club's interests against the so-called injustice of football authorities in Egypt and improving its infrastructure prompted the general assembly to elect him as chairman in 2005. At the same time, the media-shy and Zamalek's long-serving fan Abbas was pumping cash into the club although he wasn't occupying a formal position within the board. With Mansour at the helm, the Cairo giants were involved in disputes with many parties, including arch-rivals Ahli, the Egyptian FA and the media.
Mansour in a ranting speech "I'm the knight who never falls off his horse," the ever-confident Mansour stated at that time but he couldn't live up to his words. His fiery temper cost him his job more than once as the National Sports Council (NSC) intervened to sack him and appoint Abbas, his foe, as interim chairman. Under Abbas, Zamalek enjoyed a relatively stable spell. They ended a four-year title drought by winning the Egyptian Cup title in 2008 and the off-field problems which used to plague them were notably eased. Players stopped complaining about their late dues and some high-profile footballers, like Amr Zaki, arrived. "We wanted to sign Zaki from Lokomotiv Moscow, who demanded 1.6 million Euros to sell him while the club could afford just 900,000," Raouf Gasser, the current board member and one of Abbas supporters, said. "Abbas intervened to pay the remaining fees and help the club complete the deal." Challenges
Abbas: It's the beginning of a new era Abbas will have a mountain to climb to help the success-starved Zamalek, who finished sixth in the Egyptian Premier League this season, regain their competitiveness in the elite competition. The White Knights, Ahli's traditional competitors at the summit, were outshone by the likes of Petrojet, Harras Hodoud and ENPPI - all of whom are financially stable. Abbas can provide Zamalek with such stability but his limited administrative skills raise concerns over his ability to keep the team on equal terms with their rivals. During his previous tenure in office, the 63-year-old faced criticism because he wanted to sort out any problem himself rather than assigning such a duty to more experienced personnel. He was also accused of bringing in big-name stars for propaganda purposes without considering Zamalek's real needs. Ghanaian striker Junior Agogo, who joined from English side Nottingham Forest last summer, was an example of that after turning out to be the biggest flop in the Egyptian league. "Transfers at that time were done haphazardly. Personal interests conflicted with the club's interests," Al-Ahram pundit Hassan Al-Mestekawi said. Zamalek just need to systemize their administrative work if they are to challenge for honors during the next few years. The ball is now in Abbas court to do that.
