Like Mighty Sphinxes: Commentary by Suffian Hakim

And once again, the mighty Pharoahs are the rulers of Africa, winning their third consecutive African Cup of Nations with a 1-0 victory over fierce rivals Ghana in Luanda today. Individual honours were given to their footballing princes, captain Ahmed Hossem - the cultured midfielder was picked as Player of the Tournament, while attacker-slash-super-supersub-slash-hero-of-the-final Mohamed Gedo came off the bench to claim his Golden Boot.

Their dominance over African football in the first decade of the 21st century is remarkable. As big money brought about the globalization of football, Egypt was relatively insulated as compared to big exporters Nigeria (with the likes of Nwankwo Kanu, Yakubu and Jay-Jay Okocha) and Cameroon (the master himself, Samuel Eto'o, Geremi, Alexandre Song). In their current African Cup of Nations squad, the only player still plying his trade in Europe was Borrusia Dortmund's striker, Mohamed Zidan. Ahmed Hossem used to play in Belgium for heavyweights Anderlecht, but returned to Egypt two seasons ago.

And yet it was the Northern Africans who lifted the trophy in Luanda. And they did so without boasting a Didier Drogba or an Obafemi Martins or (had it not been for the terrorist attack) an Emmanuel Adebayor. Their winning goal in the final was scored by a 25-year-old who made his national debut less than half a year ago. Mohamed Gedo's total number of caps attained since then is less than a twentieths of 34-year-old captain Ahmed Hossem's 172.

Our Lions can learn a lot from the Egyptians. Sure, there are a lot of differences between us and the Egyptians. Their history has spanned for millenia, and they are hailed as one of the earliest civilisations in human history, Our history started mere centuries ago, with an Indonesian prince throwing his crown off his ship so it wouldn't sink. Their half-lion protector is the Sphinx, who presides before the Giza pyramids. Our half-lion protector is the Merlion, who spits out a lot of water into the Singapore River.

In football, the gulf is evident, but more bridgeable. We lack our own Ahmed Hossem - a charismatic leader so fine an athlete that he is capable of leading well into his 30s. A decade ago, we had such a player: only instead of Ahmed, he was an Ahmad. And instead of Hossem, he was Fandi. Fandi has since hung up his boots, and has since delved into the coaching and management aspects of the game. However, he had no successor in the national team. Indra Sahdan Daud, while intelligent and blessed with crisp finishing, has been inconsistent. Aleksandr Duric, imposing and towering, is foreign, and arrived into the scene too late to be a central figure in Singapore's international exploits. Noh Alam Shah perhaps possesses some of Fandi's guile, but lacks the discipline to achieve the latter's lofty heights. Khairul Amri, while blessed with talent, is still young and learning his trade.

The Egyptian team has a strong spine, with the rejuvenated defender Hani Said and experienced centre-back Wael Gomaa providing a stable platform to launch strong attacks spearheaded by the creative forces of Hossem, Shikabala and Zidan and the very enthusiastic Emad Moteab. Singapore has something similar. Baihakki Khaizan, Precious Emujeraye and Daniel Bennett, when on song, can provide a very solid base for Messrs. Hariss Harun, Khairul Amri and Indra to express themselves. And while this combination did bear some fruit regionally (a Bronze in the latest SEA Games), the Lions have yet to make their mark at a continental level, let alone in international football.

A problem with Singaporean football is also perhaps our over-reliance on young talent. The existence of a Young Lions team in the S-League bears testament to that. While this ensures that these prodigies are groomed to fulfil their footballing potentials, it deters, perhaps even inadvertently preventing, late bloomers from making that step up to become a force in the national team. Egypt's hero of the final, Mohamed Gedo, earned his first cap at 25 - a senior citizen among national team debutants - and went on to become the tournament's top scorer with his 3rd to 8th caps. Building for the future is good, as long as the efforts of the less green are also given recognition.

Egypt also has a much different footballing culture than most of the African teams. It is identified by a stronger Middle Eastern influence rather than an African one. While perhaps lacking in physical prowess as compared to their counterparts in the tournament, the Egyptian squad managed this record-breaking achievement through determination and a strong, disciplined approach. Singapore has a different footballing culture also. Taking its cue from manpower trends in Singapore, the national team has also imported foreign talent into its ranks, giving the team a much more metropolitan feel than other teams from the region. This diversity in talent and footballing styles, if channelled properly, could bode well for Singaporean soccer.

If our Lions can learn from Egypt's triumphs, perhaps one day Singapore too, can dominate regional or continental soccer the way Egypt has.

And then finally we can revisit Goal 2010, but for a later date.