Player ratings for Egypt’s 1-0 win in Muscat over Gulf Cup champions Oman over the weekend.
I went ahead and rated the players more by unit than individually; probably a more useful method for friendly matches with extra substitutions.
Goalkeeping – 9 - Only Essam El-Hadary played. A bit of a shaky start at first but he picked it up fast and made some spectacular saves to keep a clean sheet. Can he take this form to Blida next week?
Defense – 6 – Yes, no goals allowed, but that was no thanks to the shaky defense. If an average keeper was in there Egypt might have allowed at least 1 goal. Oman of course isn’t horrible, but a defensive display like this will not cut it in World Cup qualifying and certainly not in the Confederations Cup. Hany Said was the best of the bunch, but not spectacular. Ahmed Ouka wasn’t as impressive as I would have hoped but he wasn’t horrible either. Both he and Gomaa get a 6 at best, and Said gets a 7.
Midfield – 6 - I understand it was hot and humid and that this was just a friendly. I do think the team overall would play better if it was an official match, but we have to rate according to performance (not conditions) and it was sub-par. Sayed Meawwad had a pretty decent match along the left flank, though I feel he doesn’t always know where he is, i.e. sometimes too far upfield when he needs to be back or too far back when he needs to be upfield. Overall he did well and I wouldn’t mind him starting in Blida.
Muhammady was pretty non-existent. Not much else to say about his performance.
Hosny Abd Rabbo was very pissed off all match for some reason. Good to have determined, aggressive DMs but he needs to watch his temper in what will be a tense atmosphere next Sunday. He played well though, and solidified his starting position I think it’s safe to say.
No idea why Abdel Aziz Tawfik started. I was quite surprised that Ahmed Khairy and Mohammed Hommos both started on the bench. This was my only beef with Coach Hassan Shehata’s lineup. Because of this, Hommos didn’t even get a chance to play. He and Khairy should have at least played a half each. Khairy was an improvement over Tawfik but there was still a bit left to be desired in the rear midfield. Tawfik will not make the final list of 23.
Mohamed Abou Treika showed why he needs to start. His form has really picked up in the past several weeks after a bad spell. Zidan was decent and it’ll be a toss-up as to whether or not he’ll start in Blida.
Strikers – 7 – Zaki was decent; not bad, not spectacular. He scored a perfectly legitimate goal nullified for offside. I have no idea why Abou Greisha was brought in, let alone actually being on the team. No offense to Ismaily fans but he is such a useless striker and by far the weakest link on that club.
Coaching – 7 – Pros: went to a 3-6-1 as I was hoping. The midfield linked up a bit better than it did against Zambia as a result. Still needs to be better though. Ouka got some decent playing time. Nothing special but he’s at least an optional alternative to Fathallah now. Started Abd Rabbo like he should have against Zambia. Started Treika and Zidan together. No Mohammed Shawky, either as a sub or a starter.
Cons: Starting Tawfik. I have no explanation for that one with Hommos and Khairy there. Maybe he saw something in practice that we haven’t. Playing Abou Greisha. I just don’t see the point of him even being on the team. Not really a con, but perhaps Abdel Wahed El-Sayed should have played some in the second half in goal, considering Hadary’s rumored suspension. If Shehata somehow knows that the suspension rumors aren’t true, then playing him the whole match was the right thing to do.
Overall more pros than cons. We’ll never agree 100% with everything every coach does. We got a good indication of who some of the starters will be and who will and won’t make the final squad. Shehata will have some difficult decisions to make in some spots.
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