Online Newsroom: Egypt News Archive
A difficult mission awaits Bradley with the Pharaohs
September 29, 2011
Al-Masry Al-Youm
By Omar Halawa
The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has signed former US team coach Bob Bradley to lead the Pharoahs, with the job comes the task of not only adopting to Egypt's soccer atmosphere, but also of turning fans' dreams into reality by qualifying for the 2014 World Cup.
As he signed his contract with the EFA Saturday, 53-year-old Bradley told reporters he is aware of the "difficult mission" ahead and has a plan to form a new, strong team that is able to qualify for the 2014 championship in Brazil.
Soccer experts say achieving this will not be easy, despite Bradley's admirable record with the United States over the past five years, most notably qualifying for the final match of the 2009 Confederations Cup in South Africa.
Bradley succeeds Hassan Shehata, one of Egypt's most renowned coaches, who led the team to three consecutive African Cup titles in 2006, 2008 and 2010.
"Generally, coaching has nothing to do with nationality, yet leading the country's national football team requires awareness of the atmosphere in which the game is played, which takes a long time," says Taha Ismail, FIFA's Cairo bureau manager and former coach of the Egyptian team.
According to Ismail, understanding the nature of the Egyptian player cannot be gained merely by watching local games, but requires deep study.
The announcement of Bradley's appointment comes at a time when there is little of the political support that Shehata enjoyed under former President Hosni Mubarak. In addition, the EFA is witnessing much instability as several board members have resigned and some clubs are calling for a confidence vote.
Gamal al-Zoheiry, chief editor of Akhbar al-Reyada, a weekly state-run sports newspaper, says "Bradley's success will depend on his ability to adapt to the largely unprofessional atmosphere of Egyptian soccer. We have problems setting championship schedules, not to mention administrative instability both at the EFA and football clubs."
According to Zoheiry, Shehata's nationality did play a role in his success.
"Shehata won political support for his successes, and I expect that will be the case with Bradley if he makes positive results."
The national team's performance has declined over the past year. The team already missed the 2012 African Cup hosted by Guinea and Gabon. Shehata resigned after two losses and two draws against lower ranked teams such as Niger, Sierra Leon, and South Africa.
Egypt dove to 36th in the FIFA ranking in September, down from the ninth position in July 2010.
Egypt has only qualified twice for the World Cup, in 1934 and 1990. Observers see a big contradiction between the team's sweeping African success and the "unjustified" failure in the more famous world competition.
Bradley says the Egyptian league is rich in skillful players that can help him build a new squad that combines expertise and youthfulness.
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