Africa Cup Of Nations: Egyptian Assistant Coach Says Mido Was Omitted For 'Technical Reasons'

Zamalek’s coach Hossam Hassan was left gutted by how his player was treated by the Egyptian technical bench.

Egypt's assistant coach Hamada Sedki has explained that Mido’s omission from the African Cup of Nations finals was down to ‘technical reasons'.

The tactician denied widespread rumours that Mido, who took part in the 1-1 home draw with Malawi on Tuesday, showed lack of commitment during the Pharaohs' recent training camp.

"The decision to leave him out of the squad is purely due to technical reasons," Sedki was quoted as saying on Filgoal.com.

"I talked to him yesterday to inform him of the technical staff's decision. And today, Egypt captain Ahmed Hassan phoned him to ease his disappointment."

Mido had said earlier that he learned his omission from the tournament through the internet, something that also galled his Zamalek coach Hossam Hassan.

"I am really sad by the way that Mido was left out of the final squad after he was named in the provisional list," Hassan told Zamalek's official site.

"Shehata disregarded Mido's history and caliber and excluded him in a manner that could really affect the player's morale. Mido was more distraught to learn his fate via the press. The Egyptian management didn’t even bother to tell him personally."

Shehata said earlier that he left (Mohamed) Hommos out of his provisional squad because he didn’t want the player to feel down. I believe that Mido deserved to be treated like that," he added.

"In the end, we all have to respect the manager's decision, and I hope it doesn’t have a bad effect on the player."