International Football
EGYPT PLANS TO BUILD MUSEUM FOR MO SALAH
In somewhat surprising news, Mohamed Salah will have a museum built in his honour in Egypt.
The Liverpool ace recently picked up his second consecutive African Player of the Year award last week and was heralded as an inspiration to Egyptians by sports minister Ashram Sobhy.
Salah broke the record for the most goals scored in a 38-game Premier League season last year, netting on 32 occasions. His exploits have seen the Egyptian rise as one of the greatest talents in the game, for which he will be honoured.
The news comes from the Express who quote Sobhy stating that the 26-year-old deserves the honour of a museum being erected in his name as his home country are proud of his footballing success.
“The surprise that I was preparing for Salah is the construction of a museum bearing his name at the Gezira Youth Centre in Cairo,” Soby explained. “Salah is delivering outstanding performances with both Liverpool and the national team. All Egyptians are proud of his achievements.
“I hope that winning this year’s title [of Africa’s best player] will be a big boost for him to continue his achievements, and to deliver more outstanding performances at club level – as well as with the national team in the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt next June.”
Salah secured a place for Egypt in their first World Cup since 1990 – and his own in the country’s footballing folk law – when his late penalty saw his nation beat Congo 2-1 in qualifying back in October 2017.
And though Egypt were knocked out in the group stage of the World Cup, the forward has still maintained his fine club form this season. He is currently the Premier League’s joint top scorer with 14 goals.
His prowess in front of goal has also fired Liverpool to the top of the table and they are on course to win their first league title in 29 years. Perhaps, if they win the league, we’ll get a Mohamed Salah museum in Liverpool too.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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