Ibrahim Hassan, the manager of the Egyptian national team, described Argentine star Lionel Messi as "provocative and cold," noting that his brother, Hossam Hassan, the team's head coach, was downplaying the player's status during the matches.
اضافة اعلان
In an interview with "ON Sport" channel, Ibrahim Hassan said that Messi provokes the national team players and looks at the referee, adding that the referee sent off Saafan El-Sagheer because Messi provoked him. Meanwhile, Hossam Hassan kept referring to Messi simply as "Number 10" to make the players feel he was just an ordinary player.
He praised the Egyptian fans who supported the team in the 2026 World Cup, considering them "the best fans in the world." He pointed out that travel expenses outside Egypt were high, yet the fans constantly moved behind the team.
Regarding Haitham Hassan's lack of participation in the tournament, Ibrahim Hassan explained that the matter was linked to legal procedures that needed to be completed. He noted that Engineer Hany Abo Rida finalized the paperwork, and there were plans to include the player in the Arab Cup, but amendments to the documents prevented that from happening.
Egyptian Agencies
