El-Derndely denies misconduct claims and confirms Egypt coaching staff will stay

Egypt Football Association vice-president Khaled El-Derndely has denied reports of misconduct involving the national team’s coaching staff or players during their visit to South Sudan.

El-Derndely, who led Egypt’s delegation for the match, said the incident had been exaggerated after the Pharaohs secured a 5-0 victory in the second round of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

“Nothing inappropriate happened, and no-one would dare overstep the mark with me,” El-Derndely told On Sport. “What happened was a mistake, and there is a difference between someone making a mistake and someone acting improperly. Quite simply, some of what was said about the matter contained exaggerations.”

He explained that he had arrived at the airport around half an hour before the delegation because of a delay affecting the team at Cairo Airport.

“I was sitting in the airport lounge. When the bus arrived, the coaching staff went straight to the bus heading for the aircraft,” he said.

“That was the mistake. There is a head of delegation and, both officially and as a matter of courtesy, he should be greeted. That is what we are accustomed to. Instead, three or four members of the coaching staff boarded while I remained where I was and did not move.”

El-Derndely said the players later greeted him, followed by assistant coach Mohamed Abdel Wahed and administrative director Waleed Badr.

“All the players greeted me, as did the medical staff, and we spoke together,” he added.

He called for the team to remain stable with the qualifying campaign still ongoing and said everyone involved must understand their respective responsibilities within the delegation.

Asked about Mohamed Salah, El-Derndely replied: “Mohamed Salah? Everything is normal with Mohamed Salah. Nothing happened at all.”

Salah left the Egypt camp after the team’s opening-round match against Angola.

El-Derndely also said the head of every travelling delegation must prepare a report covering all events during a trip, whether it involves the senior national team, youth teams or the women’s team.

He firmly rejected suggestions that Egypt’s coaching staff could leave.

“The Egypt coaching staff are certainly continuing. There is absolutely nothing on the table concerning their departure,” he said. “I have not discussed the staff’s future with Hany Abu Rida. They are continuing normally, and we do not settle scores.”

El-Derndely also criticised the wording used in reports about the delegation’s arrival.

“Since when has a report about the arrival of a national team or club delegation said it was headed by the coaching staff?” he asked. “These are professional principles, regardless of any problem or crisis.”

He said the Egyptian Football Association’s website had initially published a report describing the delegation’s arrival in South Sudan, before deleting it. The same thing happened again when the team returned to Cairo.

“This was clearly deliberate, and there will be accountability to ensure it does not happen again,” he said.

Egypt returned from South Sudan after winning 5-0, with Omar Marmoush scoring twice and Mostafa Abdel Raouf “Ziko”, Ibrahim Adel and Hamza Abdelkarim each scoring once.

The result moved Egypt to four points in their group.