Pharaohs off to a strong start at CAN

By Khalil Hareb in Amman
For Al-Shorfa.com
2010-01-16

[KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/Getty Images] Egypt (in red) won its first game 3-1 over Nigeria.

Egypt's Pharaohs are showing signs of life after being thrashed by the Fennecs in the World Cup qualifiers. All the national sides competing in the African Cup of Nations are hoping to win the tournament, but the Pharaohs are playing for national pride after losing to Algeria in Sudan. Furthermore, the Egyptians know they will face tough opponents and must persevere if they hope to repeat past victories. The major tournament, which Egypt won in 2006 and 2008, began on January 10th.

The Pharaohs displayed high energy on Tuesday (January 12th) in their 3-1 win over Nigeria.

"The Super Eagles are a strong team, and most of the players are very experienced. The game wasn't easy, but we played a great match, and we deserved the victory," Egyptian star Mohamed Zidan was quoted by Kooora.com after the match. The Super Eagles' Joseph Yobo said his team "played a great first half; we scored first, but Egypt was better later in the game".

"We could've won the match if we'd played as well as we did in the first half," he added.

Egypt now leads Group C with 3 points and will take the pitch against Mozambique (1 point) on Saturday for an in-group second round match.

In other Egyptian football news, Nigeria striker Stephen Worgu was set to join the Red Devils as of January 13th. Worgu arrives at Ahly on a loan deal from the Sudanese side El Merreikh FC for a year and a half under the winter transfer window. The Nigerian star told BBC Sport last month, "I think I have fulfilled one ambition of playing outside Nigeria and the next step is to take my game to Europe."

Meanwhile, Kuwait has been banned from participating in international basketball competitions, according to the vice-chairman of the Kuwaiti Basketball Federation, Khalil Ibrahim Taher. FIBA informed the federation on January 11th when the Kuwaitis received a letter explaining the reasons for the decision. "The Kuwaiti rules didn't align with the rules of the international organisation," Taher told the press, adding that Kuwait "will be barred from international participation in several tournaments at the club and team levels".

Elsewhere in basketball, the 2010 Dubai International Basketball Championship opened on Thursday with 10 different Asian clubs competing. The tournament lasts until January 24th. Last year's winner, Riyadi, is hoping for a repeat.

The tournament is divided into two groups, A and B, with five clubs in each group. Group A consists of El Gezira (Egypt), Mohran (Iran), Sporting (Lebanon), the UAE's national team and Wahda (Syria). In Group B are Zain (Jordan), Nasr (UAE), Champville (Lebanon), Smart Gilas (Philippines) and Jalaa (Syria). First-day matches went smoothly and teams got right into action as Mohran beat El Gezira 90-80. The UAE hosted Riyadi and lost 95-81. The Syrian side Jalaa grabbed a win over Smart Gilas 89-76 later the same day.

In other sports, Kazma won the 2009/2010 Kuwait Volleyball Championship. They were officially crowned the champs on Thursday after beating Kuwait Club 3-1. Meanwhile, the winner of the past three championships, Qadisia, was able to save the year by winning second place. The former champs beat Arabi 3-0. Kuwait Club earned third place, and Arabi brought up the rear in fourth.

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