“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Petrojet, and it is not being withdrawn.
At 35 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 7.93 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Petrojet have done the hard part with Zamalek, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Everybody at Petrojet saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 34 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
Squad27 Aug 2035
Rasheed Ahmed falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Day 12 of the vacancy. Candidates have been priced, sounded out and quietly ruled out — and the caretaker’s win ratio is becoming an argument all by itself.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Four paragraphs on the club website, none of them about football. The board thanked him, wished him well, and had the search under way before the page went up.
Not an interim appointment — an institution with an empty coaching office. Somebody unfamiliar will run the sessions this week, and the question of how a club gets into this state is one the board will be asked and will not answer.
“Somebody picks the team on Saturday. This week it is me, and that is as far as I have thought.” No promises were made in either direction, which is how these usually begin.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Petrojet, and it is not being withdrawn.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Petrojet have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Petrojet have gone to Ittihad with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Squad23 Jul 2035
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hameed Aderoju is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Mohamed Goldy was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 36 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
“I have done everything asked of me in training and it has not changed a thing on a Saturday.” The most familiar complaint in football, and one Petrojet will have to answer with minutes or with a transfer.
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Petrojet can pretend not to have heard.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Petrojet have done the hard part with Smouha, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Petrojet asked and Ittihad said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Mohamed Goldy and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Mohamed Marwan is on it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Petrojet is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
The offer went to Ittihad this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Petrojet offered $490.0K; El Masry said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
Squad9 Jul 2035
Rasheed Ahmed falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abubakar Liadi is on it.
In brief
The dugoutBassem Warda asks for a word with the manager
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Petrojet have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Petrojet, and it is not being withdrawn.
The offer went to Ittihad this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Petrojet asked and Al Ahly said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Mohamed Goldy was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Hameed Aderoju is on it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Petrojet, and both men came out saying it was fine.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Petrojet have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Ittihad have kept their man, and Petrojet go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad18 Jun 2035
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rasheed Ahmed is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Mohamed Goldy and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Petrojet, and it is not being withdrawn.
The name of Bassem Warda has come up in conversations Petrojet were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
The offer went to Ittihad this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Hameed Aderoju was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Haras El Hodoud have kept their man, and Petrojet go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Petrojet, another week without a signature from Hameed Aderoju.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Mohamed Goldy was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Badr Mousa signs something — a contract at Petrojet or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Petrojet is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Petrojet may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad21 May 2035
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hameed Aderoju is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Mohamed Goldy and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Mohamed Marwan is on it.
In brief
The dugoutBassem Warda asks for a word with the manager
The mood at Petrojet has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Two goals and a mark of 8.39 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 7 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Petrojet is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
2‑3 to Police Union, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad23 Apr 2035
Rasheed Ahmed falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Mohamed Goldy and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad16 Apr 2035
Rasheed Ahmed falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Hossam Trezeguet has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Salah Zaki is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Fathy Trezeguet has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Ibrahim Elneny has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Petrojet can pretend not to have heard.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Wiktor Matyjewicz and Petrojet agree another 3 years.
Squad2 Apr 2035
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rasheed Ahmed is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Mohamed Goldy was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Petrojet, another week without a signature from Junior Mendes.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 11 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The terraces26 Mar 2035
The mood at Petrojet has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Petrojet is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Rasheed Ahmed and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad26 Mar 2035
Bassem Warda falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Petrojet can pretend not to have heard.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Petrojet they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Mohamed Goldy and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Successful dribbles: 16. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout26 Feb 2035
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Interim Coach left the room before anybody could ask which.
Two goals and a mark of 8.80 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Petrojet asked and Al Ahly said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
A 2‑0 win over Military Production, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout12 Feb 2035
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Interim Coach kept it short after the 2‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abubakar Liadi is on it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Petrojet have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Boardroom5 Feb 2035
Petrojet close the window on a squad of their own making
0 in and 3 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
$230.0K on the table at Ittihad. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Rasheed Ahmed was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Petrojet asked and Ittihad said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Zamalek have accepted the money. What Petrojet do not yet have is the man, and between here and the photograph is a conversation about wages that both sides are dreading.
Squad22 Jan 2035
Rasheed Ahmed falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Both clubs in the mire, one fixture between them, and a ground that will be louder and more frightened than at any point in the season. Petrojet know what is at stake and so does everybody in the away end.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 1‑3, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, and a scan that said otherwise. He goes back to Zamalek; Petrojet go back to the market; and both will insist there is no story here.
$230.0K on the table at Ittihad. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Petrojet asked and Al Ahly said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
15 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Petrojet can pretend not to have heard.
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 7.90 at 34, and nobody on the pitch was better.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Petrojet have done the hard part with Zamalek, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Add another name to the list: Military Production have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Bassem Warda. The answer from Petrojet has not changed — yet.
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad8 Jan 2035
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hameed Aderoju is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
12 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Rasheed Ahmed was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Beaten 2‑3, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad18 Dec 2034
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hameed Aderoju is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
A performance of 8.21 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
The dugout18 Dec 2034
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 2‑3 Interim Coach left the room before anybody could ask which.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abubakar Liadi is on it.
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
11 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Beaten 0‑3 by Masr El Makasa, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Squad11 Dec 2034
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rasheed Ahmed is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at Petrojet can tell you which week it ends in.
10 combined actions and 6.75. The job he did is the one that shows up as other people looking good, and the only reliable way to notice it is to watch what happens on the afternoons he is missing.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Petrojet, another week without a signature from Ashraf El Hadary.
The dugout11 Dec 2034
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑3 Interim Coach left the room before anybody could ask which.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Petrojet will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Mohamed Goldy was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
7 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
The dugout20 Nov 2034
The manager has not finished forgetting Abdallah Mohamed's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Abubakar Liadi is on it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Petrojet, and both men came out saying it was fine.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Al Ahly in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
2 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Petrojet could ask drops and the wages Ashraf El Hadary can ask rise.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Petrojet will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 8 goals between Petrojet and Ittihad, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings13 Nov 2034
Hameed Aderoju was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.16. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Petrojet will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
6 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Squad6 Nov 2034
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hameed Aderoju is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Petrojet told Ramadan Marwan something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 69 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad16 Oct 2034
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hameed Aderoju is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad16 Oct 2034
7 new faces, and Petrojet are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Mohamed Goldy’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Petrojet needing him to play as if none of it matters.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Mohamed Marwan is on it.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Petrojet. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
100 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Squad18 Sep 2034
6 new faces, and Petrojet are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 2‑0, Interim Coach could afford to be generous.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Petrojet can pretend not to have heard.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. Petrojet will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Petrojet, another week without a signature from Ibrahim Abdelhakim.
Nobody at Petrojet will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Petrojet, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 9 arrived, 13 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad4 Sep 2034
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mohamed El Shenawy is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Behind, and beaten by any honest reading, until minute 89. Ismaily had the points in their pocket and a corner of the ground still believed, which is generally when it happens.
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: El Masry keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
The offer went to Al Ahly this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Rasheed Ahmed was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Nobody at Petrojet will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Military Production waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Petrojet is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Petrojet can pretend not to have heard.
Petrojet had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Masr El Makasa, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
Squad19 Jun 2034
Words at Petrojet training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rasheed Ahmed is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Masr El Makasa have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Petrojet this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Mohamed Hassan is on it.
In brief
The dugoutPablo Blanco knocks on the manager’s door