The Argentinian coach Ramón Díaz, the former coach of Al-Ittihad Club, is close to signing a contract with Al Ahly, following intense negotiations.
Daily News Egypt learned that Díaz has stipulated the agreement to having an entirely foreign assistance team, of which his son Emiliano will be a member. Díaz has also refused the presence of a football manager, which was declined by Al Ahly’s management, leaving the matter to be decided on within days.
Díaz, who was very close to training Al Ahly before the team hired French Patrice Carteron, has already started to follow up on Al Ahly’s state, and watched the game yesterday against the Arab Contractors. He is expected to come to Cairo within days to formally finalise the agreement.
Al Ahly officials did not give details on the coach’s salary or his team, but rumours indicate it will be in the realm of $150,000 per month (EGP 2.5m). This huge salary will require support from the sponsoring company, given that Al Ahly is preparing to enter the transfer window period to reinforce the team, after having recently lost the African Champions League and the Zayed Club Cup, sparking anger inside the club.
The management of Al Ahly has entered a race against time, to speed up Díaz’s hiring in order to replace Mohamed Youssef, the interim coach, especially as the team will shortly undergo a series of difficult matches in the Egyptian Premier League. These matches will also impact the team’s ability to retain the League’s title for the fourth season in a row. Hiring a new coach has also become an urgent need to decide on the transfers in January, and avoid further technical problems, if the administration decides to impose certain players on the prospective coach.
On another matter, Mahmoud Al-Khatib, chairperson of the club, is undergoing medical examinations in Germany before starting the physiotherapy programme. Al-Khatib is eager to return quickly to Cairo in light of Al Ahly’s situation, but his medical condition is preventing him from doing so. He is to stay under medical observation, after undergoing a tumour surgery in the neck area, affecting the spinal cord and causing pain.
Al-Khatib is continuously communicating with Sayed Abdel Hafeez, the acting football director, who was assigned by the board of directors to oversee the football sector, in order to learn about the latest developments in this regard.