Egypt Olympic coach Hany Ramzy has expressed satisfaction with his team’s progress so far and promised fans more success in the future.

“I am so happy we qualified for the 2012 London Olympics. It’s the fruit of two years of really hard work,” the former international defender said in an interview with Ahram Sports.

The young Pharaohs finished third in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) championships, held in Morocco, gaining a ticket to the 2012 London Olympics.

“It was a tough tournament and I expected Gabon team to be the powerhouse of the tournament and they went on to clinch the title.

“I want to say to the Egyptian supporters that there is no need to worry about the team’s ups and downs because this is reasonable to expect after we’d prepared to play the tournament on home soil.”

The championship was supposed to be held in Egypt before it was switched to Morocco due to safety concerns following ongoing unrest since the 25 January uprising that forced former president Hosni Mubarak to step down.

Ramzy, a former Neuchâtel Xamax, Werder Bremen, FC Kaiserslautern and FC Saarbrücken player fired at critics who “underestimated” him, and said he did not “pay attention to ‘mean’ reports” in the press and was “only focused on results the pitch.”

The young Pharaohs’ last appearance at the quadrennial showpiece came in 1992 in Barcelona, where they lost against Spain and Qatar, though they defeated Colombia, and failed to progress beyond the group stage.

“I trust the ability of my squad to achieve glory at the Olympics and we are working on a good preparation camp to get them in top shape,” Ramzy concluded.

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