Iran defeats Palestine amicably with two goals

The Palestine national team suffered a loss to its Iranian counterpart, with a score of (0-2), in the friendly match that brought them together on Saturday in the Iraqi city of Basra, as part of the two teams’ preparations for the upcoming international competitions, the most important of which is the Asian Cup competitions scheduled for the end of next year.

The Iranian national team's two goals came in the final minutes of the match, after substitute Sardar Azmoun opened the scoring in the 77th minute, before Saleh Hardani added the second goal in the 84th minute, and the Iranian national team decided the confrontation in its favor.

The match witnessed Amid Sawafta, the Egyptian Port Said midfielder, being sent off in the 65th minute, after receiving a second yellow card, just four minutes after his first warning.

The Palestine national team is playing in the first group of the Asian Cup, along with Saudi Arabia, the host country’s national team, Kuwait and Oman, while the Iranian national team is in the third group alongside China, Syria and Kyrgyzstan.

Hamada Sedqi, the coach of the Egyptian Olympic football team, confirmed that technical and physical readiness and commitment will be the basic criteria for selecting players during the next stage, stressing that continuing in the ranks of the team will go to the most prepared and the best performing and influential on the field.

Sedqi expressed - in statements conveyed by the media center of the Egyptian Football Association on Saturday - his optimism about the level of players, 5 days after the start of the team’s first camp at the National Teams Center. Pointing out that the spirit shown by the players, and their insistence on proving their abilities and gaining the trust of the technical staff, enhances optimism about the next stage.

The technical director explained that the opportunity is available to all players to prove themselves, stressing that the selection will depend on their technical and physical levels and the extent of their commitment during the preparation period.

The Egyptian national team is preparing to face its Japanese counterpart in a friendly match next Tuesday, as part of the preparation program for the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations hosted by Egypt, which qualifies for the Olympic Games (Los Angeles 2028).

The team’s technical staff includes Ahmed Hassan as administrative director, Adel Mustafa as general coach, Ahmed Ezz as assistant coach, Essam El-Hadary as goalkeeper coach, and Kamal Abdel Wahed as load planner.

The Egyptian Federation indicated that the preparation of the Olympic team is being monitored by Shawqi Gharib, the Federation’s technical director, within the framework of the plan of the Board of Directors headed by Hani Abu Raida to build a strong base for the national teams.

A state of great relief prevailed in Egyptian sports circles after the victory achieved by the Pharaohs team over its Malawi counterpart and sweeping them 5-0, in a match in which the players wore the glove of proficiency and got rid of the most prominent defects that plagued them in their last match against Angola, such as extremely slow passing, not getting the ball out correctly, and confusion in the defensive line.

Sports pundits and observers described the match, which was held at Cairo Stadium as part of the third round of the second group in the 2026-2027 African Cup of Nations qualifiers, as an “impressive start” for the new technical director, Ali Maher, who took over responsibility a few days ago, following the departure of the former technical director, Hossam Hassan, whose last period of leadership of the national team was characterized by widespread controversy over what was said about his entering into crises with some of the team’s stars.

Sports critic Mustafa Saber considered the distinguished appearance of the Egyptian national team in the first experience with Ali Maher as “a natural result of the state of calm and psychological comfort that characterized the preparation camp for the match, which gave the players more space to focus and express their potential. Maher’s artistic touch also appeared in organization on the field, pressure on the opponent, and the speed of the offensive transition, in addition to the team spirit and desire to prove themselves on the part of the players before the new technical staff.”

Saber added to Asharq Al-Awsat that “the 5-0 win over Malawi is a strong and ideal start,” and he continued, “This start needs to be continued against stronger competitors so that we can truly judge the experience.”

The match also combined an abundance of goals and an enjoyable performance, as the individual skill of the players was highlighted in parallel with the collective tactical plans. Despite the modest technical level of the Malawi team, the form in which the Egyptian team appeared carried a positive indicator and sent a strong message to potential competitors in the future.

Sports critic Muhammad Al-Barami pointed out that “Ali Maher is a coach who plays offensive football, cares about aesthetic performance, and has clear offensive ideas compared to Hossam Hassan, and perhaps this is the reason why the team appeared in this way, as the majority of the changes were offensive even though the team was ahead by 3 goals, and everyone who participated contributed to changing the result, whether Ibrahim Adel with the industry, or Hamza Abdel Karim by getting a penalty kick.”

He added to Asharq Al-Awsat, “Ali Maher’s experiences in all the teams he coached were of an offensive nature, which was reflected in the national team, in addition to the fact that the players were calmer, unlike Hossam’s period, perhaps due to the latter’s nervous and violent nature in many matters, and tension was the most prominent characteristic in the way he dealt with many players,” as he put it.

Al-Barami stressed that “it is too early to talk about a final evaluation of the Pharaohs until Maher’s leadership, as the man is still exploring things and beginning the journey,” noting that “the only thing that is certain is that we are facing a strong indication of a good coach who possesses his tools and is good at dealing intelligently with the stars and balances his relationship with the fans of both Al-Ahly and Zamalek, despite his former affiliation as a player to the Red Castle, but he maintains a good relationship with the White Knight fans who were close to his training at one time.”