LONDON: Tottenham agreed to re-sign Ahmed Mido from AS Roma on Tuesday. This is almost two months after the Egypt striker left the London club. Mido will sign with Spurs if he gets a work permit, which is a formality, according to the club, which didn t release details of the transfer fee or contract. …

CAIRO: Holders Al Ahli scored four goals in an opening 20 minute blitz to easily beat Asante Kotoko of Ghana in their African Champions League Group A match on Saturday and ease closer to a semi-final place. The 4-0 win puts the Egyptian champions well in contention for the final four with two more matches …

Tanta stadium given the clearance By Amro Hassan Gharbeya governorate approved holding the Tanta-Mahalla game at Tanta club stadium in the third week of the Egyptian League. Following a meeting between Gharbeya governor and security officials in the city, Tanta have been given the clearance to play their home League games at the Tanta stadium. …

Belated but certainly in need, will be Egypt’s upcoming financial assistance to Lebanon. Egypt and Lebanon will play a friendly football match on Sept. 5 in Cairo, the proceeds of which will go to the reconstruction of Lebanon which has been blitzed by Israel for 32 days. More officially, Egypt is to play Burundi, a …

Situation in Israel deemed unsafe for football matches Israel’s woes with Hezbollah’s men of resistance and their Katyushas have extended to football. Four Israeli football clubs have to look outside the cozy confines of their home grounds if they want to continue participating in European club championships. Two Union of European Football Associations Cup (UEFA) …

Egyptian squash players fare well internationally, but where are the rewards? CAIRO: Egyptian squash has never seen a year quite like this one. In April, Amr Shabana became the world’s number one player, the first Egyptian to reach the pinnacle of the sport. Last month, Shabana’s countrymen also attained heady heights. Ramy Ashour became the …

JOHANNESBURG: Playing catch-up is not a pursuit the footballers of African club champions Al-Ahly of Egypt are used to. The most popular club on the continent lifted the Champions League last year after 14-match unbeaten run and have won the last two editions of the national championship without suffering a loss. But a 78-match run …

Reuters JOHANNESBURG: Defending champions Al Ahli have been hit by injury and suspensions as they host Algeria s JS Kabylie in Cairo on Saturday seeking to bounce back from their opening African Champions League group defeat. The Egyptian giants, who lost a two-year unbeaten record on African soil with defeat at Tunisia s CS Sfaxien …

CAIRO: Two players from holders Al Ahli, Emad Moteab and Shady Mohamed, have been suspended for the club s next African Champions League match after trying to attack the referee last Saturday, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced. The pair, also fined $1,000 each, attempted to assault Mali s Komlan Coulibaly after the final …

Lack of fitness cost Al Ahli unbeaten record, says coach Reuters JOHANNESBURG: Continental champions Al Ahli paid the price for a lack of early season fitness when they lost their 78-match unbeaten record on African soil, according to their Portuguese coach Manuel Jose. The Egyptian side, who had not lost a game in domestic or …

World champion squash player determined to hold onto his title CAIRO: Often nicknamed “The Prince of Egypt by the international press, Amr Shabana has proven to be the best squash player, not only in Egypt, but also in the world. The charismatic Shabana is the quickest left-hander in the league, which has helped him reach …

SFAX, Tunisia: A first half header from CS Sfaxien defender Issam Merdassi ended a run of more than two years without defeat on African soil for defending champions Al Ahli of Egypt, at the start of the group phase of the African Champions League on Saturday. Tunisian international Merdassi headed home at the back post …

JOHANNESBURG: Title holders Al Ahli have two records in their sights when the group phase of the African Champions League begins this weekend. Al Ahli, who beat Etoile Sahel in last year s final, is away to another Tunisian side, CS Sfaxien in its opening Group A match on Saturday. The Egyptian side is looking …

Rovers boss Hughes eyes Mido LONDON: Blackburn manager Mark Hughes revealed on Tuesday that he is trying to sign Egypt striker Mido from Italian club Roma. Mido, 23, is available after Tottenham decided not to sign him following a loan spell at White Hart Lane last season. Hughes is keen to bring Mido back to …

CAIRO: The 2006 World Cup will go down in the books as a tournament which features egregious mistakes by referees, unprecedented bookings, as well as solid defensive tactics which overshadowed most offense, allowing a number of defenders to shine. The side that won the most coveted cup in the world of sports was in fact …

Agence France-Presse BERLIN: Africa is ready, Africa s time has come, Africa is calling. Those emotive words from South African president Thabo Mbeki about South Africa s hosting of the 2010 World Cup could just as well sum up Africa s hopes of actually winning the trophy. They may be ready but their time has …

CAIRO: For any teams looking to advance in the next World Cup, thinking that an assortment of talented strikers and attack-minded midfielders are enough, this World Cup may cause them to think again. As goalkeepers turned out to be the hero’s in the quarter-finals, the defenders prevailed during the semi-finals. In the first semi-final between …

It’s come down to Europe vs. Europe, former vs. former champion, blue vs. blue. France s Les Bleus vs. the Italian Azzurri. The stage is set for a classic. Tomorrow witnesses the biggest football match in four years. Any questions? History says Italy will win. The French will be making just their second ever appearance …

During the quarterfinals of the World Cup, teams relied on them to save the day The quarterfinals of the World Cup proved that quality goalkeeping can make the difference between two evenly-skilled teams. During the knock-out stages, a heart-breaking penalty-shoot may be the only way to decide on a winner. In the highly anticipated game …

Football super powers dominate the World Cup CAIRO: Italy was fortunate to walk away with a last-minute victory against an impressive Australian team. From the start, the Italians resorted to a defensive mode of play, with few counter-attacks that resulted in hardly any problems for the Australian side; the Australians had the better percentage of …

Traditional powerhouses fill up the ranks of the quarterfinals CAIRO: An intense level of world-class football was exhibited throughout the round of 16 at the World Cup 2006, where traditional powerhouses in the world of football have booked their place in the upcoming quarterfinals. The quarterfinals will witness six of the former world champions, Brazil, …

BERLIN: Their ranks include a tax inspector, a tire salesman, even an airline pilot. Then they step on the soccer field and become referees. Conventional wisdom holds that the best referees are the ones that nobody notices. Instead, these arbiters of what is fair and what is foul are fast becoming the story of this …

CAIRO: Two weeks of mediocre play in the Fifa World Cup resulted in only a few moments of excitement, as the majority of the games of the first round produced score lines which, while not always disappointing, resulted in little of the flair usually associated with the World Cup. Among the 16 sides that made …

  ŠΘ # # # # #

CAIRO: When Mexico scored their second goal to go ahead 2-1, a group of Egyptians threw up their arms in displeasure. Mexico was not playing Saudi Arabia or Tunisia, but that didn’t stop the men in the local café from expressing their frustration with how Mexico’s opponent was playing. The team was Iran and Egyptians …

  ŠΘ # # # # # Germany (A) Vs Sweden(B) on June 24 at 6pm CLT. Argentina (C) Vs Mexico (D) on June 24 at 10pm CLT. England (B) Vs Ecuador (A) on June 25 at 6pm CLT. Portugal (D) Vs Holland (C) on June 25 at 10pm CLT. Italy (E) Vs Australia (F) …

CAIRO: Cairo club Zamalek have been banned from next season s Egyptian Super Cup because they refused to accept their medals when they were beaten in a tempestuous domestic cup final last Friday. Zamalek s arch-rivals, Al Ahli, won the final 3-0 to complete the league and cup double, having finished 14 points ahead of …

Agence France-Presse CAIRO: Ghana defender John Paintsil s waving of an Israeli flag to celebrate his team s World Cup goals drew a barrage of insults and furious reactions in Monday s Egyptian newspapers. Paintsil, who plays for Israeli club Hapoel Tel Aviv, celebrated the two goals in Ghana s 2-0 win over the Czech …