Mustafa Shobier, Al Ahly and Egypt national team goalkeeper, spoke about his participation in the World Cup.
Mustafa Shobier
Club: Al Ahly
Mustafa Shobier described Hossam Hassan, coach of the Egyptian national team, as "very bold" technically.
Mustafa Shobier said on Al Nahar channel: "Scoring goals is very enjoyable for the fans, but I felt that my presence in goal would be better than as a striker".
He continued, "Ibrahim Riyad was the first to predict that I would be a good goalkeeper, and I thank all my goalkeeping coaches in my career so far, and they played a major role in what I am now".
He explained, "Every coach I trained under added to me to learn a certain movement, whether passing or saves, and Michel Yancoun made the biggest difference with me because I trained with him for 5 consecutive years".
He added, "If the striker feels that as a goalkeeper I get rid of the ball quickly as soon as he presses me, it will affect him psychologically during the match, but calmness on the ball and playing with the feet sends a message to the opponent not to be afraid".
Shobier revealed, "Saafan Al Sagheer, a day or two before any match, focuses on the opposing team's strategy, whether relying on crosses or shooting from distance, and there are special training sessions for that".
When asked about dealing with Hossam Hassan, he replied, "He is a very bold coach and bears the consequences of his decision regardless of the fans' opinions, and he is enthusiastic, yes, but I see it as normal because it is part of his personality".
He revealed, "The match against Iran was the moment when Hossam Hassan showed the most nervousness during the World Cup in the first break to drink water, due to the team's laxity after taking the lead".
He continued, "Hossam Hassan was angry between the halves of the New Zealand match because of his focus on their strength, which is crosses, and despite that we conceded a goal from a corner".
He stressed, "The ball that saddened me the most in the World Cup was Iran's goal because I did not see the Iranian player's shot at first due to the presence of Rami Rabia and Mustafa Zico in front of me, so I saved the ball with difficulty, but unfortunately I did not succeed in saving the second ball despite its difficulty, but I hold myself partly responsible for it".
Shobier concluded his statements, "Messi's goal was a very fast shot and I saw it late, but I expected it to go away from the goal after saving the ball because of its speed, but unfortunately it hit the crossbar and went into the net".
Egypt reached the round of 16 in the World Cup for the first time in history before exiting the tournament after losing to Argentina three goals to two.
