Egypt sack coach Rui Vitoria following AFCON failure

Caretaker February 5, 2024

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The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) announced on Sunday the termination of Portuguese coach Rui Vitoria’s contract, just a week after Egypt’s disappointing last-16 exit at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in the Ivory Coast. Vitoria’s contract, initially set to run until the 2026 World Cup, was cut short due to Egypt’s underwhelming performance in the AFCON, where they were eliminated in a penalty shootout by the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The EFA revealed that Vitoria, along with his entire coaching staff, has been relieved of their duties. Mohamed Youssef, a former coach of Al Ahly who led the team to the African Champions League title in 2013, will take over on an interim basis. The statement from EFA also mentioned that they would consider the CVs of foreign coaches for a potential permanent appointment.

Rui Vitoria took charge of Egypt in 2022, inheriting a team facing a decline in form after reaching the AFCON final in Cameroon. Despite a promising start, securing a place in the AFCON finals and winning their first two World Cup qualifiers, Egypt’s lackluster performances in the Ivory Coast led to their premature exit from the tournament.

Vitoria joins a list of coaches, including Djamel Belmadi of Algeria, Tom Saintfiet of Gambia, Chris Hughton of Ghana, Jalel Kadri of Tunisia, Adel Amrouche of Tanzania, and Jean-Louis Gasset of Ivory Coast, who have departed following the AFCON.

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