Amman (AFP) – No coach who worked in Jordan had the experience that the late Egyptian Mahmoud Al-Gohary had over the course of 12 years, as the national team’s technical director and founder of centers with promising players who became stars, standing one step away from winning the Asian Cup in football for the first time in history. The country faces Saturday against host Qatar.
Published on: 09/02/2024 – 07:33
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Al-Jawhari was at the helm of his work at the Prince Ali Centers for Promising People in the capital, Amman, in 2012, when he suffered a stroke that did not give him much time, and he died three days later at the age of 74.
Jordan held a solemn military funeral in his honor and in appreciation of his influential impact on football, before the body of the former signal corps officer was transported to Cairo, where a military funeral ceremony was held for him.
Al-Jawhari, who previously led his country to qualify for the 1990 World Cup in Italy after 56 years of absence and won the African Cup of Nations as a player and coach, is credited with his contribution to the emergence of many talents, some of which are still roaming the stadiums.
Immediately after the brilliance of striker Yazan Al-Naimat, who scored three goals for Jordan in the current Asian Cup, Jordanian websites were quick to circulate an old photo showing Al-Jawhari honoring Al-Naimat, a young child at the time, with a medal, after the Sahab Center won in a tournament organized by Al-Wadeen Centres.
After “The General” was appointed coach of Jordan (2002-2007), the Promising Centers were established in 2003 under his supervision. During that period, Jordan reached the quarter-finals of the 2004 Asian Cup in its first participation, where it narrowly lost on penalties to Japan, which won the title.
Ahmed Qtaishat, the former director of the technical department and teams in the federation, who is close to the seasoned coach, explains, “Al-Jawhari set the rules of work in these centers by distributing them to the various urban, rural and desert governorates of the Kingdom. He also established centers for elite talent in the main cities of the capital, Amman, Irbid, and Zarqa.”
He continued to Agence France-Presse, “He remained at work until the last hours of his life when he personally supervised the training of one of the elite centers at the polo field in the capital, Amman, on August 31, 2012, when he suffered a stroke in the evening.”
The promising centers are credited with producing most of the players for the team that qualified for the World Youth Cup in Canada in 2007, and El-Gohary attracted their talents directly to the national teams, while their role has receded recently and the amount of interest in them has decreased, unlike in El-Gohary’s days.
Fruit-harking stage
After his departure from coaching the national team, Al-Gohary returned in 2009 as a planner and technical advisor, focusing his attention on the work of the Al-Waed centers. He began a long phase of planning for the game to reap its fruits later, by reaching the decisive round qualifying for the 2014 World Cup against Uruguay under the supervision of his compatriot Hossam Hassan, and continuing participation in the Asian Cup.
Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein, President of the Jordanian Federation, said that obtaining an award of recognition and distinction from the Asian Confederation in recognition of the development and preparation of football players for the future would not have been achieved “without the wisdom and foresight of the late Captain Mahmoud Al-Jawhari, who laid the foundation for the strategy to advance Jordanian football.”
With Al-Jawhari, Jordan reached its highest rank (37) in the world rankings in 2004 (87 today).
On Saturday, Moroccan Hussein Amouta, who also calls for focusing on emerging talents, is looking to occupy a position alongside Al-Jawhari, if he leads Jordan to the first major title in its history.
© 2024 AFP
2024-02-09 06:33:05
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