Egyptian football in disarray after coach is effectively sacked on live TV

Egyptian football is in turmoil again, this time over the fallout from the Pharaohs’ shock defeat against Ethiopia and the on-air firing of the national coach after just three games in charge.

Egyptian Ehab Galal succeeded Carlos Queiroz two months ago after the Portuguese failed to agree terms to extend his contract.

But a 2-0 defeat against Ethiopia in 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying last week left Egyptians fuming and calling for the coach’s head even before the 4-1 friendly defeat against South Korea on Tuesday.

Gamal Allam, head of the Egyptian Football Association, called in to a popular TV talk show this week to say that two members of the EFA board were already looking at possible replacements for Galal, effectively sacking him live on air.

Galal, according to local media reports, learnt of his dismissal when he was about to board a plane to Seoul. He bade the players farewell after the South Korea friendly and flew to the US for a holiday.

“We are looking to correct our mistake,” Allam told TV host Ahmed Moussa. When asked why they had hired Galal in the first place, his response raised eyebrows in the football crazy nation of 103 million people.

“I asked the man in charge of money at the federation whether we had dollars in the safe to pay for another foreign coach. He told me we didn’t,” said Allam. “We chose an Egyptian coach because of the country’s economic situation and the rising value of the dollar.”

Mohamed Salah of Egypt in action during the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying soccer match between Egypt and Guinea in Cairo, Egypt. EPA

He said Galal was making 750,000 Egyptian pounds a month (about $40,000), while his Portuguese predecessor Queiroz was cashing in $127,000 a month.

Local