Imagine the biggest match of a professional football league, being abandoned by one of the participating teams - that simply does not show up.
Imagine that this team that hasn’t arrived for their match, is scheduled to host a champions league match a few days later, at the very same stadium they did a walk-over. And guess what? They impressively beat the reigning champions.
Welcome to a week in the life of Zamalek football club.
FANS, CORONAVIRUS AND MORTADA MANSOUR
This past week, some of the most fierce derbies and rivalries in the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions took place.
In Turkey, Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray fought in a great battle which ended in the Aslan victory 1-3; In Greece, PAOK hosted Olympiakos for the match of the season and lost 0-1 at the Toumba; In Tel Aviv, Maccabi smashed Hapoel in a one-sided event; In Jeddah, Al-Hilal brought Ittihad to their knees once again; And in Algiers, Mouloudia has won against USM in a match that was more of an artistic fandom display than a proper game of football.
But among these great football moments, two Clasico matches stood out for all the wrong reasons.
In Iran, Sepahan was about to host Persepolis, but due to the spread of Coronavirus in the country, it was decided that the match will take place behind closed doors. This game is Sepahan’s annual best-seller, an always sold-out match, and the team refused to play with no fans in the stadium. After almost an hour of wait, it was decided to postpone the game after the 'corona storm' passes.
While the panic in Iran seemed justified, in Cairo things took a different turn. The hysteria and the scandalous situation were the result of chaotic managements, a history of hatred and search for lost respect. This bubbly and toxic stew led Zamalek to avoid showing up for the Cairo derby in the 16th match-day of the Egyptian Premier League.
THE OUTCOME OF A BRAWL
Remember the great Al-Ahly and Zamalek derby covered here last week?
A few days after the match, it was discovered that after Zamalek won the penalty shootout, a massive brawl broke out, involving players and club officials alike.
Mahmoud Kahraba, ex-Zamalekawy and current Ahlawy, and Abdel Razak Shikabala, Zamalek’s captain stood at the centre of this violent event. It is reported that the Abu Dhabi media and organisers tried to keep things quiet in order not to ruin the festive environment around the event. Still, they did report it to the Egyptian Football Association.
The consequences turned out to be a substantial blow to both sides. According to KingFut, both teams were fined EGP 100,000 each, as Al-Ahly’s Mahmoud Kahraba was expelled until the end of the season and fined for the same amount. Emam Ashour of Zamalek gained the exact same punishment, while Shikabala have been fined EGP 100,000 together with an eight-game suspension.
Zamalek’s president, infamous Mortada Mansour, received a EGP 200,000 fine and was banned for 3 matches. Mansour is known for his provocative behaviour and sayings, but here the FA gave him a reason to react in rage.
DERBY DAY
All this happened three days before the two teams were about to play each other once again.
On Monday, heavy rains swept the streets of Cairo. Early in the morning, rumours started spreading about Zamalek not showing up for the game.
It was then reported that Zamalek will play the match with their youth squad, using the excuse of keeping the ‘important players fit’ for their Friday’s CAF Champions League match against Espérance Tunis.
Zamalek was founded in 1911, won dozens of titles in Egypt and Africa, and it is one of the most prestigious and popular brands in the land of Pyramids and in the Arab world. This kind of behaviour wasn’t surprising if it was coming from a smaller club, but Zamalek under Mansour is a different story.
In 2014, Mortada took the helm of the club that is historically identified with the upper classes in Egypt. In his 6 years with the club, no less than 29 different coaches came and went. I’ll repeat that - 29 coaches in less than six years. This is a man who was also a successful lawyer, a member of the parliament and a presidential candidate before he supported Abd al-Fatah Sisi. Mansour has an outspoken and a volatile personality.
Sometime in the afternoon, it was reported that Mortada announced Zamalek won’t play the derby. This game was a delayed match from the 4th matchday, and Al-Ahly insisted on playing it, although sources in the FA assured BabaGol that Zamalek tried to move it. It’s not a new trick pulled by Al-Ahly. Last season’s champions refused to play against Zamalek due to the many games their arch-rival needed to complete.
Much like in a schoolyard, the question was ‘who started?’ Regarding the rivalry between Al-Ahly and Zamalek, it is impossible to answer, and if we try it will probably take more than a hundred years. The first match between the two was in 1917. Since then, the two won many titles locally and continentally, as Al-Ahly is counting 41 championships, Zamalek is stuck with only 12. This rivalry defines Egypt.
Back in 2020, an hour before kickoff, it was claimed that Zamalek will play it, but as declared in advance with the club’s youth team.
But it wasn’t the case. When Al-Ahly’s players came on to the pitch at before the empty stands of Cairo International Stadium, only the match officials were there. It was clear something went wrong.
Zamalek said that “they intended to play but had been delayed in traffic”, but the FA did not ‘buy it’.
They waited for an hour then the referees that came from Lithuania, blew the final whistle and gave Al-Ahly a technical 2-0 victory as Zamalek “Abandoned” the game. The punishment for Zamalek by the FA was a 3-point deduction, but starting next season.
After all, how can you punish one of the biggest teams in a league with no fans?
THE RESURRECTION
The way these events were perpetrated in the world was obscene. It stained the reputation of the Egyptian League - after all, how can one of the major clubs in the league not show up for its biggest game of the season?
Zamalek quickly recovered though. On Friday, the Whites hosted Esperance Tunis, the two-time African Champions, and in the same stadium they didn’t show up at on Monday, the Zamalekawys have put up a tremendous display and won 3-1, from goals by Achraf Benchraki, Mohamed Ounajem and Mahmoud Alaa.
Now, Mortada Mansour and his players will go to Rades for the second leg, looking to commit one of the biggest surprises in African football this year and to knock out the Tunisians giants.
After the match, it looked like Al-Ahly is looking to let go of Kahraba as a result of his behaviour and suspension, as the player was left out from their team sheet before Mamelodi Sundowns clash in CAF Champions League.
This was an average week in the life of Zamalek football club.