Former Ittihad star Essam Shaaban has been named chairman of the Alexandrian club following the departure of Mohamed Moselhi a few weeks ago. Moselhi, a long-serving Ittihad patron and a former member of the political National Democratic Party, stepped down after the January 25 Revolution. His departure left the coastal club in crisis as first-team were not paid for months. Meanwhile, Ittihad manager Mohamed Amer dropped 13 players from Tuesday's friendly match with Smouha after they refused to train with the team on Monday. Amer added that the group will also be fined for their indiscipline. Mahmoud Samir, one of the players on strike, revealed that the action was a ‘message' to the Supreme Council of Sports to hire a club chairman as soon as possible.