Ibrahim Hassan, Egypt national team director, revealed the features of an integrated project to develop Egyptian football over the coming years, affirming that the technical staff submitted a vision to the Football Association that includes reconsidering the league competition system, alongside attempts to reduce the number of foreign players.
Ibrahim Hassan said in his interview with the Emirati newspaper Al-Bayan: "Our plan is for the league to return to 18 clubs, with a gradual reduction in the number of foreign players, to provide greater opportunities for the Egyptian player, because we have started to suffer a shortage in some positions, such as the right and left backs and the striker, due to the heavy reliance on foreign players."
He added: "This matter affects the level of the national teams, and therefore we submitted a vision to the Football Association aimed at gradually reducing the number of foreign players, which grants the Egyptian player greater opportunities for participation and development, and enhances the quality of local elements."
The Egypt national team director spoke about the importance of the regularity of the league competition, affirming that the stability of the tournament schedule was one of the most prominent factors that positively reflected on the national team.
He explained: "Since we assumed responsibility, our goal has been for the league to start and end on fixed dates, like the European and Arab leagues, because Al Ahly and Zamalek players for years were not getting any rest due to the overlap of competitions."
He continued: "We cooperated with the Clubs Association to put in place a new system for the competition that reduces the number of matches, which contributed to ending the season in May and granting the players a suitable rest and preparation period before the start of the new season. The competition also continued until the final round last season, and the title was not decided until the last week, which confirms the success of the current system."
He concluded his statements by praising the support the team has received recently, affirming that the recent successes impose greater responsibility in the coming period, as he said: "The achievement that was realized places greater responsibility on us, and therefore we need continued cooperation between everyone, whether the Clubs Association or the Egyptian Football Association, and I extend thanks to Ahmed Diab, as well as the current and former Football Association boards, for the support they provided us."
