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Al-Ahram Weekly 15 - 21 July 1999 Issue No. 438 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 15 - 21 July 1999 Issue No. 438
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Profile Features Travel Living Sports Time Out Chronicles People Cartoons Letters Glory days and dreams
By Nashwa Abdel-TawabThe Confederations Cup, which will be held in Mexico from 24 July to 10 August, is the most recent addition to FIFA's list of tournaments. Eight teams will take part, playing at the Aztec Stadium in Mexico City and Jalisco Stadium in Guadalajara.
Aztec and Jalisco -- two names to stir the memories of anyone who has followed football over the years. When polls are carried out to determine what people consider to have been the most memorable match of all time, the winner is usually the thrilling World Cup semi-final between Italy and Germany on 17 June 1970, when the Italians won 4-3 after extra time. This was certainly one of the greatest games to have been played in the Aztec Stadium, which was only built four years earlier. No fewer than 19 World Cup matches have been played there in 1970 and 1986. Among them was also the game in 1986 in which Maradona scored two legendary goals against England.
For the 1999 Confederations Cup there will be an interesting link between the past and the present. Back in 1986, the 1998 World Champions and the team they deposed played each other at the Jalisco stadium in a quarter-final match. That day, the French under Michel Platini managed to beat a Brazilian team that included Zico, Socrates, Careca, and many others. But their victory was a narrow one, determined by a penalty shoot-out. This year, we are likely to be treated to more of this sort of excellent football.
The eight countries competing for the Cup are defending champions Brazil, who won the Copa America in 1997 and were runners-up in the World Cup; host country Mexico, who won the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 1998; Germany, the reigning European champions; Saudi Arabia, 1996 Asian Champions; Egypt, winners of the 1998 African Nations Cup; the USA, representing CONCACAF, as runners-up in the 1998 Gold Cup final; Bolivia, representing CONMEBOL, as losing finalist in the 1997 Copa America; and New Zealand, the sensational winners of the 1998 Oceania Nations' Cup, thanks to a victory over their arch-rivals Australia.
Egypt's mission won't be easy, as we are drawn in the same group as Mexico together with Bolivia and Saudi Arabia. This means we will have to face not only the Mexican team, but their fans as well, in the famous stadium of which they are so proud. It is in the Estadio Azteca that the Mexican national team has earned their reputation as a force to be reckoned with in world football. With the proverbial "twelfth man" on their team, and nearly always capacity crowds of 115,000 behind them, even seemingly invincible opponents begin to wilt and crumble.
The Confederations Cup was first designated a FIFA competition in December 1997, when it was held in Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. There had been two other tournaments previously, both in Riyadh, in 1992 and 1995 -- friendly events held under the title of the Intercontinental Championships.
It was Prince Faisal Bin Fahd, president of the Saudi Football Federation, who suggested the idea of a major competition in which continental champions could compete for a minor version of the World Cup.
In 1992, four countries took part in the new-born competition. The winners were Argentina, then reigning South American Champions. They came with a star-studded team including Batistuta, Redondo, Canniggia and Simeone, and carried off the trophy, beating the host country, who had tremendous support from the home fans, into second place. The other two teams taking part on that occasion were the USA and Côte D'Ivoire.
For the 1995 competition, six teams were assembled. This time it was Denmark who took the honours, with strong performances from the Laudrup brothers earning them victory over Argentina. Mexico and Nigeria made it to the semifinals, while Japan and Saudi Arabia were eliminated after losing both of their group games.
Although the competition was brought under the FIFA umbrella in 1997, the venue remained the same. This time eight teams were invited to Saudi Arabia. With World Champions Brazil and the host country automatically selected, there was room for another Asian team, the United Arab Emirates. The organisational format was not difficult to devise: eight teams played as two groups, followed by a semi-finals and finals. The tournament lasted only ten days -- a record short time, perhaps, in view of the number of matches played -- and in the end, it was the pre-tournament favourites Brazil who carried off the cup. Their opponents in the finals that day were Australia, who had held the South Americans to a goalless draw in their group encounter. But the final was far from a repeat of that result, with Romario and Ronaldo scoring three each!
Even though the competition has now been transferred to another continent, the concept remains almost identical. There is some strong competition, though with the home advantage behind them, the host country should not be underestimated. They have a long unbeaten record in the Aztec stadium, and will be difficult opponents for their group, among them Egypt.
Egypt has so far played 15 friendly international matches, and has two more to go this week. Last Saturday they met New Zealand in Mexico while on a camp there. It was a closed match, with no foreign journalists or even television cameras, at the request of Mahmoud El-Gohari, technical manager of the Egyptian team. "I want to try out my players in different positions, especially striker Hossam Hassan, who might not play due to his leg injury," El-Gohari explained. "He had the cast taken off just last Monday and is training very lightly."
It will be difficult to find a replacement for Hossam Hassan, as no one else in the squad has much experience in this position. Egypt drew 1-1 with New Zealand in what was a very weak match on both sides. They will meet again today, before playing the USA on 20 July.
