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Egyptian veteran goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary has stated that he has not retired from football yet despite being unattached to any club for about a year now.
The 47-year-old made it clear that being out of club football for a year does not mean he has quit the sport.
He also spoke of his time as Egypt’s number one stopper and his last days with the Pharaohs including dropping in the pecking order of custodians.
“I am not retired yet, despite I’m without a club since a year ago but I assure you I am not retired yet. in the last 25 last years I was the number one in Egypt,” El-Hadary told Egyptian TV.
“At the 2017 AFCON, the coach told me that I will be the number three goalkeeper after Ahmed El Shenawy and Sherif Ekramy. I cried much in my room alone. I trained hard and after injury of the two goalkeepers, I played and led Egypt to the final.”
The former Al Ahly and Zamalek goalkeeper became the oldest player to participate in a World Cup match when he featured for Egypt in Russia at the 2018 World Cup.
“We made the dream of the Egyptian people to come true and returned back to the World Cup. Things did not go well with us there as we had many injuries like Mohamed Salah who played against Russia with an injury,” he said.
El-Hadary joined Egyptian side Nogoom in January 2019 and played only three matches for the club before he left them after their relegation at the end of last season.
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