“We are trying to introduce a different playing style and the players need time to implement it,” the newly appointed Galal, 54, slumped to a 0-2 loss to Ethiopia in the second round of Group D games of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers played in Malawi.

The Pharaohs were utterly outplayed in the game, failing to maintain a winning start to their African Nations Cup qualifying campaign. 

They kicked off their campaign last Sunday with an unconvicing 1-0 home win over Guinea despite the presence of Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah.

Salah, who played against Guinea through the pain barrier due to a minor injury, sat out the Ethiopia loss.

Egypt’s loss to Ethiopia will increase pressure on Galal, whose appointment in April was met with doubts from some pundits and fans alike, given his lack of experience as a coach for a national team compared with his the heavyweight CV of his Portuguese predecessor Carlos Queiroz.

“The players started the game in good form and they dealt with the game as an easy mission but we received two goals that suspended our efforts to claim the victory,” Galal told the post-game’s press conference.

“We did not deserve the victory in the first half but in the second half we introduced a good playing style and we still need to work hard,” he added.

“The game’s result could be hard to forget and may affect the coming games, especially as we will play a friendly next week then we will be out of action for a long time,” Galal said.

The Pharaohs are scheduled to play a friendly game against South Korea in Seoul on Tuesday.

“We have big players in the squad but they were out of their normal performance during the game. All the team’s players suffered from bad luck today,” the Egypt national team coach said.

(For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)