The past few years have witnessed quite some antics of many foreign-based Egyptian players, who now have a well-known reputation of being unprofessional. Several Egyptians were impressive enough to earn moves to Premier League clubs, but every time one of them seemed to be carving out a name for himself, indiscipline problems marred his success. Subsequently, the notion that the Egyptian footballers lack the necessary attributes to succeed abroad has become increasingly widespread. 'What is it with these Egyptians?' a question that was asked by Eurosport in a report which highlighted the recklessness of the Egyptian players who used to ply their trade at the Premiership. Hossam Ghaly, Amr Zaki and Mido were referred to as obvious examples of how Egyptian footballers can be self-destructive. The African players, in general, are globally renowned for their incredible fitness and tendency to give the game their all. They do their utmost whenever they get the opportunity to join a European side, so as they can settle down away from the below-average living standards in their homelands. But with the Egyptians it's a whole different story. They are perceived to be of a much lower caliber than their fellow Africans, in terms of mentality and physicality. They neither have the same determination to maintain consistency nor the physical presence on the pitch, not to mention their inability to adapt to the European lifestyle.
The notion that the Egyptian footballers lack the necessary attributes to succeed abroad has become increasingly widespread. Ghaly was doing great with Tottehnham Hotspur till he inappropriately lost his nerve when he was substituted by his then coach Martin Jol in a Premier League game over a couple of years ago. The skillful midfielder took off his jersey and tossed it while heading for the dugout to incur the wrath of Spurs' officials and fans alike, and his tantrum dissuaded other Premiership sides from signing him. Zaki also ended his loan spell with Wigan Athletic at a low ebb last term, although he put in some scintillating performances in the first half of the season. Steve Bruce labbled the well-built marksman 'the most unprofessional player he has ever worked with' as a result of his irresponsible acts, and now the 26-yearold's future could well take a turn to the worse. Mido also showed lack of professionalism when he skived off Middlesbrough's current pre-season training camp for almost two weeks, which urged the club to take disciplinary measures against him. The towering hitman has been keen to move away from the Riverside since Boro's demotion to the Championship last term, and presumably that's the reason behind his absence. The Egyptian players' reputation could be further blemished if the underachievers didn't wipe the slate clean. With such a reputation, the Egyptians won't have much of a chance to join any European outfits. No matter how talented a player is, he won't forge a successful career unless he has a lot of self-discipline, which is evidently hard to preserve for some Egyptian athletes.
