Egypt Sacks Coach Vitoria after AFCON Exit

The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has sacked Rui Vitoria as head coach of Egypt. The sack came after the North African giant crashed out of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament.

The EFA board of directors said in a statement that it was “reviewing foreign coaches’ resumes”  it further “thanked Portuguese manager Rui Vitoria and his staff.”

The national team, which was eliminated from the competition last week in a thrilling penalty shootout loss to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, will be coached by former al-Ahly coach Mohamed Youssef in the meantime.

The Egyptians, who had traveled to Ivory Coast with the hope of winning their first Cup of Nations since 2010, the year before star player Mohamed Salah made his senior international debut, were bitterly disappointed by their defeat in the round of sixteen.

The team had already lost the Liverpool star to a hamstring injury, after what local pundits called a lacklustre group stage performance with three draws.

More AFCON coaches left, including Vitoria, whose time with the Pharoahs lasted less than two years.

All five of the highest-ranked African countries were eliminated before reaching the quarterfinals, along with the four previous edition semi-finalists.