Ahmed Hamdy explains Al Ittihad Alexandria move and names best manager of his career

Ahmed Hamdy says the chance to play for a club with a strong fan base was a major reason behind his decision to join Al Ittihad Alexandria.

The 28-year-old joined the club as a free agent after his contract with Zamalek expired, having previously played for both Zamalek and Al Ahly.

Speaking to Al-Nahar TV, Hamdy said: “I wanted to play for a club with a large fan base because I have played for Al Ahly and Zamalek. When I met the club president Mohamed Salama and head coach Hamza El-Gamal, I became enthusiastic about joining Al Ittihad Alexandria.”

Hamdy also believes the club can provide the right conditions for him to revive his career. Al Ittihad Alexandria have taken 10 points from their opening five league matches and are sixth in the table.

“I feel Al Ittihad Alexandria will help me succeed,” he added. “The club have achieved good results in the first five rounds of the league, which had not happened in previous years. The club are providing everything needed for success and I hope the positive results continue.”

The midfielder also revealed that he is still owed money by Zamalek from last season.

“I have outstanding payments from last season at Zamalek,” he said. “My dues were expected to be settled with John Edward and Abdelrahman Ismail, but they both left. I tried to contact officials at the club, but there has been no response.”

Hamdy singled out former Zamalek manager Jose Gomes as the coach under whom he felt most comfortable during his career.

“Jose Gomes is the manager I felt most at ease playing under,” Hamdy said. “That was reflected in the team’s results and its performances on the pitch. There were no problems between him and any player at Zamalek, and I believe Zamalek lost him.”

Hamdy also addressed his previous referral for investigation by Zamalek, saying he was not punished following the incident.

“No sanction was imposed on me after I was referred for investigation at Zamalek,” he said. “The investigation lasted only half an hour. What mistake had I committed? Perhaps it was a misunderstanding.”

He added that earning a recall to the Egypt squad remains one of his targets for this year.

“One of my goals after joining Al Ittihad Alexandria is to be selected for Egypt through my hard work and effort,” Hamdy said. “Hossam Hassan selects any player who can help him succeed. He has put his faith in many players, and I will work hard to achieve my goal.”

Hamdy has yet to play for Al Ittihad Alexandria because of injury. He missed the club’s first four matches of the season and was an unused substitute against Al Masry in the fifth round.

He has won one international cap for Egypt, appearing in a friendly against South Korea under the late Ehab Galal.