Zamalek chairman Mortada Mansour(Photo: Reuters)
After changing the team's coaches 14 times since his election as club chairman in 2014, Zamalek boss Mortada Mansour seems to be ready to show patience with new Portuguese coach Augusto Inacio, claiming that he is "done with changing coaches."
"Inacio will see out his contract with the team as the time of changing coaches has come to an end," Mansour told reporters during a meeting with the players at the club's headquarters late Thursday.
Last week, Inacio signed a one-and-a-half-year contract with Zamalek to become coach number 14 in three years under the helm of Mansour.
The 62-year-old tactician lost his starting game with the Whites in the Egyptian Premier League 2-0 against ENPPI, although his players gave a performance that met the chairman's expectation.
"Zamalek's performance against ENPPI was good despite the loss; it means it's the effort of the new coach," Mansour said.
"The talented coach is one who leads the players to reach the foes' goal, but he can't enter the field to score," he added.
Mansour went on to say that "if there are any changes it will be of the players and management, not the team's coach."
Zamalek management suspended the players' pay after the team lost their last four games in the league. Inacio then asked Mansour to give the players part of their wages.
"I agreed to Inacio's request to give the players part of their wages; they will receive them on Tuesday so they have to play well in the coming games," the Zamalek chairman said.
"You have to forget the past days only think if the future," Mansour concluded.
Zamalek, who are stuck in fourth place of the Egyptian Premier League table with 40 points, will face a tough test against second-place Maqassa Sunday in the postponed game from matchday 22 of the league.
Under the leadership of Mansour, Zamalek achieved five trophies, including the Egyptian Premier League title in 2015, the Egypt Cup in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and the Egypt Super Cup in 2017.
List of Zamalek's football team coaches in three years:
2014 – Helmy Toulan
2014 – Ahmed Hossam Mido (Egypt Cup title)
2014 – Hossam Hassan
2014 – Mohamed Salah
2014 – Jaime Moreira Pacheco
2015 - Mohamed Salah
2015 - Manuel Jesualdo Ferreira (Egyptian Premier League – Egypt Cup)
2015 - Marcos Paqueta
2016 – Ahmed Hossam Mido
2016 - Alex McLeish
2016 – Mohamed Helmi
2016 – Moamen Soliman (Egypt Cup)
2016 – Mohamed Helmi (Egypt's Super Cup)
2017 - Augusto Inacio
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